Memories
by Kindled Chime
Summary: When exactly did they fall in love? Could either of them really remember? This is the tale of the most important thing they share together... their memories... A CloudTifa Fic.
1. Part I

_Flicking through the fanfiction search engine - a finicky bastard of a program at the best of times - I came across a gaping hole where the plethora of Cloud/Tifa romances should be. NOOOO! I cried in horror, begging it not to be so, but to no avail - and incidentally waking up my flat mates because I was taking part in a spot of late night webterneting at the time. And so I decided to take up the task and partially correct the heinous oversight as soon as possible. _

_Notes: There will be no bashing of the flower girl. NONE. WHATSOEVER. At all. I like Aeris perfectly fine, I just happen to like Tifa more. Flaming me is pointless, but at first glance it makes it look like I have a lot of reviews so knock yourselves out._

_Secondly - in the game the planet is incredibly small, seeing as you can travel across it in a matter of minutes and it seemingly has no south pole. I have tweaked the travel distances, making it more like a real world. So it took weeks by foot to reach the Chocobo farm from Midgar instead of seconds. I have filled the intervening space with fictitious villages and hamlets and upgraded Kalm to a large town, working on the assumption that there was more to Kalm than we saw. Same with North Coral and most of the other places Square designed. This means that perhaps months passed between Aeris dying and the end of the story, so Cloud is not a bed hopping man-slut. It takes real time for him to reassess his feelings for Aeris. Any questions about this mail me._

_This fic will be a two parter if luck stands by me. If luck doesn't stand by me then it will probably spiral out of control and never end, culminating with me introducing Tifa's long lost twin brothers Eduardo and Freduardo Montabon. Don't ask. On with the fic! Apologies for OOC-ness, if any._

**Memories**

Part I: Ruby Eyes.

'_I love her. I don't know when I first figured that out, but it's true. I never noticed it during the Sephiroth Incident in the months after Aeris' death, except perhaps towards the end when we sat together all night waiting for the others to return. I remember I looked down at her face as she slept on my shoulder, watched her little nose wrinkling because strands of her raven hair were tickling it and felt so glad that I still had her with me. Even if she did drool on me a little.'_

_

* * *

_

_**Present - 2 years after Sephiroth**_

Cloud Strife narrowed his mako stained eyes and focused his attention on the steel blade hovering uncertainly before him, trying to ignore the high pitched cries of the chocobo's from outside. Licking his lips a little unconsciously, he stared straight ahead as the cold metal brushed gently against his throat. Trying to refrain from swallowing nervously and injuring himself more than he was about to anyway, he braced the muscles in his arm, tightening his fingers around the rubber grip in his hand... and cut.

"Dammit." The blond man cursed quietly dropping his razor and splashing cold water from the running tap on the tiny cut near his Adam's apple, trying to sooth the minuscule laceration. Unwrapping the pink towel from around his neck, where it had been lying haphazardly he rubbed at the mirror in front of him which had steamed over during his shower. Unnaturally blue eyes stared out at him, a little out of focus and slightly blurred. Leaning on the white porcelain sink he stared himself in the eye.

"Enough training to decimate a platoon of First Class Soldiers and I still can't shave without cutting myself at least once." He shook his head ruefully and arched his neck to see if the bleeding had stopped. As he ran his palm over his jaw to see if he had missed any spots Cloud hazily remembered his shaving habits being a running joke at the barracks when he had worked for Shin-ra. He smiled. After his initial failure to gain acceptance into Soldier he had settled half-heartedly for joining the regulars instead, too ashamed to return home to Nibelhiem and face everyone after he had boasted so arrogantly that he would succeed. Especially to Tifa.

The platoon had been a body of rough men, misfits and dropouts, for whom the army had been an escape rather than a career choice. Soon Cloud found friends among them, people who didn't ask to many questions about your past and who were happy to share a joke or three over a beer or nine. In it's own way it had been fun. Cloud found himself grinning sloppily at the mirror at the memories of the times they had drank themselves catatonic together, or of the mornings after they had drank themselves catatonic together since the night in question was a booze filled blur. All before the mission to Nibelhiem.

It had become a precious thing for him, to have these memories intact and complete. For so long after the battle with Sephiroth had ended he had found himself questioning the memories he had: wondering whether they were his own or just stories Zack had told him which he had absorbed in his two years of experimental testing and formed into his own memories. It had taken an age, but two years on he was mostly confident in what were his recollections and what were the fabrications of his tortured mind.

_'Just another thing I owe her for.'_ The blond sighed, tucking an errant lock of damp hair behind his ear where it hung, devoid of it's usual spikes. Even now the memories of his time in the lifestream where fragmented and he had resigned himself to this always being the case. Ethereal images without sounds and sounds without images floated in his mind when he thought of the experiences - and a bright green glow that swamped his senses. All he knew, from his own tenuous grip on his memories and the little that Tifa had felt comfortable telling him was that she had saved him. And seen some of his deepest secrets in the process. It had taken him a while for him to realize that the idea did not bother him as much as he thought it probably should have. His initial reaction to avoid Tifa as much as possible had soon passed and he found himself actively seeking her company on the Highwind, even though privacy was in short supply on the airship. They never spoke about what happened, instead spending the time catching up on each others lives in the time they had been separated, something they had not really had the time to do since they had begun their journey. In truth Tifa spoke more than he since his memories were still shattered, resulting in most of his conversation with her attempting to match up his memories with hers.

His fingers brushed against the silver stud in his left ear, something garnered in the last two years. He smiled remembering the time he had it done. He and Tifa had left their home north-west of Midgar, where the chocobo trainers had lived and journeyed into the resurrected Midgar for a week. The slum areas had thrived and throngs of people had replaced the scattered remnants of society that Cloud had been used to seeing in his first visits to the city...

* * *

**_13 months after the Sephiroth (11 months ago.)_**

"Wow." Cloud chuckled lightly at the dull shock on his companions face as she stared at the masses of people surging through the streets of what had been a slum sector of the Shin-ra city Midgar. Tifa turned towards him and pouted at him slightly, glaring half-heartedly through narrowed ruby eyes. "Oh, bite me Cloud Strife. If you were seeing this for the first time you'd be shocked too." Cloud gave up on holding in his humour and laughed out loud. Honestly his reaction to the sight of a rejuvenated Midgar had been similar to hers the first time he had visited to gather supplies for the hatchery had been pretty much the same, except he had out and out gaped when he drove up to the gates. Like he was gonna admit that.

"Don't know what your talking about. It's just a few people, is all." Tifa continued to pout for a few seconds before blowing him a raspberry and flouncing off. Cloud laughed aloud again and followed her quickly into the writhing mass of people. It had been just over a year since the final battle with Sephiroth and in that time he had learnt many things about his smaller companion, many of them minor but all of them precious to him. They were the signs that he was forging a friendship that he had always wanted to have with the girl. One of the things he had learnt was that she could flounce. He had never thought it possible of her and had nearly had an apoplexy the first time he saw her do it when he had said they weren't going to extend the porch into a conservatory. He had capitulated. Flouncing was just not something that he imagined Tifa Lockheart doing. The barmaid outfit she used to wear would never had made it possible, but her newly expanded wardrobe made it more credible. The light blue sundress she was wearing today made perfect flouncing material.

Catching up to her quickly, his size and muscle gaining him space among the crowd, he fell into step next to her trying not to smirk. Tifa was making a great show of examining the stalls that they were walking past on the central boulevard, pointedly not looking at Cloud but a tiny smile was peeking around the corner of her face. Closing his eyes against the glare of the warm sun above him Cloud took the time to examine the street they were walking along.

After the destruction of Midgar, last legacy of the battle between Meteor and Holy, the surviving inhabitants had scavenged what they could of the remains and built up a shanty town of sorts in one of the less damaged slum sections. Two years on and it was a thriving township, with raw materials and supplies constantly supplied from the wreckage of the rest of the city. The decrepit sign outside the gates of the township claimed the name 'New Midgar', but Cloud had yet to hear anyone refer to the place as anything but simply 'Midgar' in conversation. In the two years since it's birth Midgar had grown from a few ramshackle huts into a boulevard of streets and stalls, miles long and reminiscent of the Wall Market before it's destruction. Stalls and street vendors plied their trade across the town making it a growing industrial and trading hub, with coal and ores from the freshly mined Coral caverns, fish from Junon and to a lesser extent Kalm and even a few artifacts from Bone Village all cropping up. Since Tifa and he had taken over the chocobo farm from it's previous owners they had begun to bring in chocobo's to sell, though since it had only been a few years there weren't that many so far, even given the chocobo's incredibly short gestation period. Up until now it had only been Cloud who had come into town for a few days with either a few birds or to gather supplies before returning to the farm where Tifa was looking after the rest of the flock/herd, - no one was sure what a group of chocobo were called, with even the Sage giving different answers every time he was asked - but Tifa had begged Cloud to bring her into town on his supply run this time, claiming that the herd would survive a few days by itself with sufficient feed and a couple of hired hands from the nearby hamlet to look in on them and that she was going stir crazy spending all her time at the ranch, puppy-dog eying him into submission when he seemed unsure. He hadn't known she could do _that_ either but it had made him give in over the conservatory almost instantly.

While when walking the trip between Midgar and the chocobo Ranch had taken weeks the same distance by truck took just over two days. They stopped off in the hamlets along the way for the night and would spend a day in Midgar itself before returning. The whole trip usually took Cloud about five days. Most of the food and similar supplies they used were bought from small villages around their immediate area, but some supplies had to come from a larger town like the resurrected Midgar or Kalm. Normally Cloud ended up making the trips into the 'city' about once every two or three month's depending on the consumption of goods.

Wishing absently for a pair of sunshades Cloud contemplated whether it was better to leave Tifa to her own devices or to bring her with him to collect supplies. There wasn't much reason for her to stick with him for the duration of their stay since he was only going to collect food and some dried feed for the chocobo's, but he had the nagging desire to keep her with him. He shook his head slightly, dispelling the thought. There was really no reason for them to stick together: it wasn't like she couldn't take care of herself and his errands would only bore her. Besides he remembered her talking about going to pick out a few new dresses since it had been ages since she had been shopping and as much as he enjoyed her company he wasn't going to play 'pack-mule' willingly if he could help it.

Tifa stopped suddenly and gasped, nearly leaving Cloud to walk into her before he managed to halt himself abruptly. Turning to see what had caught her attention he saw a small jewellery stall tucked between a carpenters and a accessory and materia shop. Out of habit Cloud ran his eyes over the display of materia in the window, despite knowing that the chances of them having any that he did not were fairly slim. The weight of the tiny tied securely to his belt reminded him that even if they hadn't collected numerous rewards and bounties for slaying monsters on their travels then the materia he carried would make him a wealthy man on it's own. He only kept the less powerful Fire, Ice and Lightning materia on him, as well as a few supports and a Cure, while the most powerful combinations he favoured in battle remained embedded in his sword.

Turning away from the shop to the one that Tifa was animatedly perusing, - to the amusement of the elderly couple who were minding the store - Cloud wandered over trying to determine what had caught her eye. Leaning over her shoulder he used his height to peek over and saw her handling a vibrant aqua seashell hairclip gently. His eyebrows rose in surprise. He hadn't though a small stall in Midgar would have had goods such as this.

"You don't need to worry so much young lady." The old man spoke with a wide grin, watching her tentatively handle the object. "That things as hard as iron. Watch." He plucked a similar clip, this one of a bright dappled yellow, out of the tray of wares on the table before him and struck it with force against the hard wood. Cloud watched as Tifa took the proffered clip and examined it, unable to find a mark on it's fine surface.

"We have a partnership with the armourer on the other side of the market. He imbues some of our finer wares with durability. And a couple of other things." The old woman had chimed in directing their attention to a crystal ball with a small flame dancing within it. Tifa laughed at the spectacle, delighted and Cloud couldn't help but grin. The old woman continued. "This ball is proof against fire element magic. Not much use practically, but it does look nice and it's just as durable as the clip you're holding." Tifa looked down at the green clip she held and grinned.

"How much?" The old man chuckled and looked at the woman. His wife, if the thin gold bands on their fingers were any indication Cloud noted.

"Well, we've had that clip a while, young lady. It's one of the first of it's kind you know. We couldn't let it go for less than... oh thirty gil." Cloud nearly gaped at the absurdly low price. Tifa went ahead and gaped, not feeling Cloud's muted desire for self-restraint.

"Are you sure? I mean-" The old woman held up her hand in a soothing gesture.

"Like my husband says we've had it a long time. Frankly it's taking up space we could be displaying other goods in." She grinned while she spoke, putting the lie to her words. Tifa had the money out before Cloud could blink, making him jump, slightly startled.

_'Hell, if she threw a punch that fast I would have let her handle Sephiroth and spent more time playing video games.'_ Since their victory in battle against the insane ex-Soldier both he and Tifa had found that they shared a fascination with video games, he from his time in the Shin-ra army with his platoon mates and her from her friends in Nibelhiem. It gave them something to do on boring nights when the chocobo's had been seen to for the day.

Tifa had bought the clip and was busy tucking her long raven hair into it so that it was held up at the back in a twist. Though Cloud had always preferred her hair loose to when she tied it back in a loose pony-tail for work with the chocobo's he admitted it looked good that way. She spun back to him and grinned, blushing slightly from her excitement.

"What do you think?" Cloud smiled at her, not having to bend the truth at all.

"You look great Tif." She grinned again and blushed a little more, making him feel a little awkward, while the old couple continued to grin. Trying not to let the two distract him and continued to speak. "Um, why don't you go ahead and browse some more of the stores? I'll go and grab the supplies I came for and then come look for you." The ruby eyed girl seemed a little disappointed at first but brightened at the idea of shopping. Cloud grinned internally.

_'Ah, shopping. Is there a woman who doesn't love you?'_

"Ok. I'll see you in a few then? I'll be down here somewhere trying to find a dress shop. See you!" The last was called over her shoulder as she gave a short wave and disappeared into the crowd the siren song of shopping calling to her already. Cloud waited until she was totally out of sight before turning back to the stall and gently lifting a silver chain of a hook on the side of the wooden wall that served for a wall. At the bottom of the chain a small oval stone the same shade of aqua as the hairclip Tifa had bought a few seconds before.

"Is this one the same as the other?" The elderly couple peered at it before the man shook his head.

"No sonny, afraid not. We don't have enough funds to imbue all our goods with durability, so we only manage to get a few done. The clips on the table and the one your wife bought, plus a couple of the orbs and a few others is the lot." Cloud blushed faintly at the misconception.

"Ahhh, she's not my wife. Just a friend." The frankly disbelieving look that the woman was levelling him unnerved the blond man a little. He avoided her gaze and frowned faintly at the chain and stone appraisingly. After a few moments thought he turned back to the couple. "Right. How much for the necklace and where's the armourer you have a partnership with?"

* * *

Striding down the street Cloud chuckled at the expressions he had seen on the couples faces when he had left a couple of thousand gil on their table before leaving with the necklace and their directions to the armourers. Cloud glanced warily through the crowd around him, looking for a petite woman with raven hair. Sure he was going to collect supplies after he had run this one tiny errand but he didn't really want to answer any questions or get sidetracked if he bumped into Tifa on the way. Reaching the side street the elderly pair had described he ducked into the shadows, slightly relieved to be out of the sun and into some cool shade.

It had been raining when they left the ranch a couple of days ago so the cloths he had brought had that in mind. Sadly the overcast weather had broken early in the morning leaving him feel warmer than he would have liked. It would make carting the supplies back to the truck uncomfortable, when he got around to doing it. In a fit of memory induced genius Cloud had bought the old, nearly dilapidated van that had been at the entrance to Nibelhiem for as long as they could remember and had it fixed up. Tifa had hugged him when she saw it, saying she was happy to have a symbol of their shared memories, even if it was just a truck. It normally sat in their garage next to the Harvey Daytona motorcycle that Barrett had 'liberated' from Midgar and Cid had spent hours remodeling. The others had clubbed together to buy the parts he needed seeing as they weren't much help with the practice of rebuilding the bike.

They had given it to him as a housewarming gift when he and Tifa first moved into the ranch. Barrett had said he didn't think he had ever seen him have so much fun as when he was riding that bike and swatting enemies away as they made their escape from Midgar. Apparently it had been Tifa's idea. Something about having a memory from before he left and one for after they were together again. Then she had blushed and excused herself quickly, confusing Cloud.

Flattening himself against a wall to let a group of children past him he continued into the side street. A few meters more and he exited into a second street that ran parallel to the first with similar stalls and shops running it's length. The town had expanded more than he had noticed it seemed. Continuing in the same direction he had been walking in the same direction he had been when he left the elderly couple's stall he mused over what the couple had told him.

_'A man from Wutai who sells armour. Calls himself a 'synthesist' and practices imbuing the armour he sells with elemental magic.'_ Scanning the signs of the shops he passed he soon found the one he had been seeking. And sweatdropped when he saw it. It was like the owner had transported a chunk of Wutai into the middle of Midgar. Dragon scrollwork crawled up the side of the door frame and paper lanterns hung outside, attached to a small canvas awning seemingly placed there for no other reason but to give the lanterns something to be suspended from. Intricate italic lettering over the entrance proclaimed it to be _Shoji's Synthesis Shop. _Still feeling poleaxed by the shops comparatively garish appearance in the predominantly grey surroundings, Cloud stepped through the archway into the store.

There was no one at the counter and no one else within the shop but himself. Cloud took the time to appraise the goods hanging on the walls of the room, impressed with the number of gauntlets, shoulder and leg guards and bucklers that the owner had on offer. Most of it was Wutai in style but some followed the more functional looks that Cloud himself favoured. Wondering over to the counter, while still perusing the wares on display Cloud noticed a small bead curtain covered doorway leading into the back.

"Anyone in?" He called out, assuming that the owner was in the back. Almost immediately a thin face no younger than his and framed by thin glasses poked through the curtain. Noticing the prospective customer the rest of the man Cloud assumed to be Shoji stepped through the curtain. Though he had the thin build of a Wutaian the rest of his appearance belayed that feature. His dark blond hair was tied back in a ponytail that trailed between his shoulder blades and his skin was pale rather than the pale olive colour that Cloud had seen during his brief stays in Wutai. He apparently hadn't shaved in a few days since he was sporting a light covering of hair on his face, the same shade as his hair and his eyes were a warm green rather than the dark browns and near blacks Cloud would have expected.

"Doesn't look like I'm the one you want, right?" The man said with good humour, smiling as he approached the counter. Cloud shook his head, slightly embarrassed for his thoughts to be so plain. The man laughed and leant on the counter. "Don't worry, I get that a lot. I get most of my looks from my father and he was born in Junon. But my mother was from Wutai and that's where I was raised." The man looked around the store and grinned again. "I suppose all of this is an effort for people to believe that I really do know what I'm doing even if it doesn't look like I should." Cloud leant on the counter a little further down than the man, looking at the store as he had.

"If you specialise in Wutaian work why did you come to Midgar? Doesn't seem to fit." Shoji shook his head and grinned again.

"No one in Wutai would believe that I was trained in the Wutaian style because of my looks. It's funny really. No one would believe that I was authentic back at home, but they don't believe I'm authentic here either. God, it's a pain." Cloud laughed slightly. "Anyway, enough of my troubles. What can I do for you?" Cloud turned around and fished the necklace out of his pocket.

"I bought this from an old couple a road over and they said they had a partnership with you. I was wondering if you could do a couple of things with it for me." The young man's eyes had brightened with interest.

"You mean the Craysons? Er, well it depends on what you want doing really." Cloud handed him the necklace.

"First I want it as durable as their other stuff." Shoji nodded examining the necklace.

"That shouldn't be a problem. What else?" Cloud untied the small pouch at his waist and tipped out a handful of materia searching for the one he wanted, speaking as he searched.

"I saw one of their crystal balls had a flame trapped in it. Can you trap something in the stone on the end of the necklace?" Shoji blinked and examined the necklace again, particularly the stone.

"Yeeeaah, I could manage that I think. Any preference?" He looked back at Cloud who had found the orb he was seeking and proffered it to the man. The synthesist took the small sphere and examined it curiously. "Never seen one like this before. What is it?" Cloud had finished tidying the small orbs away into the pouch again and was re-tying it to his belt when he answered.

"It's a Leviathan materia." Shoji had a spasm and nearly dropped the watery blue stone.

"Wah? There's only supposed to be one Leviathan materia and last I heard the whole of Wutai was in celebration because it had been returned a year ago, after the Meteor crisis. Are you sure this is a Leviathan materia? Doesn't seem to have much experience on it so it can't be the same one..." Cloud looked at him curiously.

"You can tell how much experience it has on it just by looking?" Shoji looked up.

"Oh yeah. It's easy when you know the trick. A Leviathan materia? Really?" Cloud chuckled slightly.

"When we travelling around we Mastered the original Leviathan materia and it birthed a new one. I gave the original back to Yuffie and kept the second. Haven't had much need to use it so the experience hasn't grown much." Shoji looked like he was about to have an aneurysm.

"Yuffie Kisaragi? THE Yuffie Kisaragi? Then that means... you're... Cloud Strife?" Cloud nodded his head dumbly. Despite the Meteor incident very few people knew what really happened, mostly contained to the team that had defeated Sephiroth. While Barrett was famous in his home town and it seemed Yuffie was famous in Wutai, Cloud and Tifa had managed a pleasant level of anonymity. He never expected anyone to know his name.

"WOW! Yuffie told everyone in Wutai all about you! Her and Vincent-"

"Wait, Vincent's with Yuffie in Wutai? Since when?" Cloud interrupted surprised at this new information. Last he had known the taciturn man had returned to Nibelhiem. But that had been before he left eight months ago.

"Oh, he's been there a few months. He turned up just before I left, saying the quiet atmosphere appealed to him and built a small house a little away from the main city. Don't know how he can like the quiet when Yuffie spends so much time with him. When I first met the guy I was surprised he hadn't shot her just to get some peace." Cloud laughed, reminding Shoji that he was talking to someone who knew the people he was talking about. The man coloured immediately. "I'm sorry I didn't mean-"

"Don't worry about it. That's just the way he is. If he heard you say that he'd laugh... well probably." Cloud waved him off, remembering a few times after Vincent and Yuffie had first met when he caught the red garbed ex-Turk fingering his gun absently when she was around. But he hadn't done that in ages. Abruptly he remembered the topic at hand. "So can you do it?" Shoji gaped at him for a second, before staring at the necklace and materia he was holding.

"Er, yeah!" Cloud watched as Shoji attempted to run in two directions at once and seemingly clothslined himself, leaving him to land with a thump on the far side of the counter. Cloud winced and leaned over the wooden surface to see if the man was ok and leapt backwards in shock as the Wutaian torpedoed back to his feet, narrowly avoiding head butting Cloud in the process. Cloud stared at him as he gazed into the distance, still clutching both the materia and the necklace.

"...My mom's never gonna believe I served Cloud Strife..." Abruptly he seemed to faze back in to reality and grinned at the blond warrior. "It's be ready in a few minutes!" He scurried into the back hurriedly leaving a bemused Cloud behind. A little while later he re-emerged from his alcove in the back and handed over the necklace and the materia. Cloud examined the stone and was pleased to see a new watery appearance to it, as if it were a glass container with a view of the sea shores inside. Happy that his hunch had proved correct he pocketed the necklace and slipped the materia into the pouch with the others.

"How much do I owe you for the work?" Shoji shook his head.

"Not a gil. It doesn't take much energy for me to do just one, but it drains me to do loads at a time. Doing my own stock plus the Crayson's drains me dry which is the only reason I charge them for it. Consider this a thank you for saving the planet." The young man grinned and scratched at the side of his jaw absently.

"Well when you put it like that..." Cloud smiled and offered his hand over the counter. "It's been good to meet you Shoji." The man blinked in surprise before offering taking the proffered hand and replying.

"It's been great to meet you Cloud." Shaking once they released each other and Cloud turned to leave, but hesitated at the door and turned back.

"Leviathan's a god to the people of Wutai right?" Shoji nodded his head in assent, pushing his glasses up his nose with a finger. "So... don't you mind that there's another one around?" Shoji grinned and leant on the counter-top.

"We believe that Leviathan is a god, a water serpent that lives within the materia that resides now in Wutai. The serpent is said to protect the country with it's power and magic. It has supposedly spent hundreds of years guarding over us. Why should we be sad that our god has had a child?" Shoji spread his hands in question. Cloud grinned and stepped outside the curtain waving good bye to the Wutaian, and heard his answering chuckle.

Wandering down the street Cloud tried to predict how far he would be able to browse the newer stalls until he had to turn back to the main boulevard for the shops that sold his supplies. His hand dipped into his pocket and rolled the stone on the necklace between it's fingers. Satisfied it was still there Cloud grinned goofily and continued. Tifa had told him along time ago that she loved staring at the sea, especially the shallows where the sand was and the water was a bright aqua. It was her favourite colour. Seeing the orb with the fire trapped inside had given him the idea, but without a dedicated water materia the Leviathan one would have to do. He was glad Shoji had pulled it off the way he had wanted. Now it looked just the way he had hoped. Still the same shade of green so that it looked like the clip she had bought, but distinctly like the sea Tifa loved. If he could spontaneously dislocate his shoulder to pat himself on the back for a job well done he would have. Now for the supplies.

Curiously gazing around at the stalls Cloud paused noticing a stall that did piercings and tattoos. Fingering his left lobe absently, he grinned and made towards it. He'd get the supplies in a few minutes...

* * *

Tifa was looking for Cloud, wary of wondering around too much in case she missed him, but not really wanting to stay still. A large bag in her hands contained her newest additions to her wardrobe, a modest spree, but without Cloud to play pack-mule for her there wasn't much more she could carry comfortably. However she had marked out a few more stalls with things she liked and planned to drag Cloud back there as soon as she found him. She giggled, and experimentally shook her head, enjoying the feeling of having her hair up. Most of the time she left it down or tied it back when with the chocobo's, but now she could feel the cooling breeze on the back of her neck which felt pleasantly different.

"Tifa!" The raven haired girl spun around at the sound of her name being called and soon picked out Cloud, obvious with his distinctive blond spikes even in a crowd this big. Grinning hugely she ran up to him, hampered a little by the bulky bag she was carrying. Arriving in front of him a little breathless she asked:

"Did you finish getting our supplies?" Cloud nodded and smiled, waving his hand in an attempt to cool his skin.

"Yeah and I lugged them back to the van too, in this weather. C'mon, feel sorry for me Tif." The girl snorted delicately.

"Baby. C'mon, there's some dresses I want you to see." She grabbed his arm, even though she didn't really need to, and started to move towards the first of her 'target destinations'. Cloud's hand on her shoulder forestalled her one woman shopping rampage and turned her back to face him.

"Before you begin the annual shop-a-rama of death," She stuck her tongue out at him, making him grin. "I have something for you." His hand dove into his pocket and pulled out a thin silver chain with stone the same colour as her hair clip hanging from it. Tifa dropped the bag and brought her hands to her mouth, stifling her gasp. Cloud dangled the gift in front of her face, noting how her eyes stayed on the stone watching the watery pattern shift and change. Carefully, even though the thing was as hard as rock, he dropped it into her slightly trembling hand where the chain dripped around the central stone like a silver pool in her palm.

Hesitantly the girl slipped the pendant on and slipped the catch into place, re-arranging it so that the catch was at the back and the stone fell to the front, just above her breasts. She held the oval stone in her hand staring at it silently. Cloud spoke to break the awkward silence.

"Well, I thought it would go nicely with the clip and I managed to get it made so it was just as durable..." Tifa looked up at him and smiled.

"It's beautiful. Thank you Cloud." He smiled weakly as she leant up and kissed him softly on the cheek. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, displacing some of his trademark spikes and giving Tifa a good look at his left ear. "You got your ear pierced!" She exclaimed peering closer at the nondescript silver stud now adorning the man's ear.

"Yeah, I figured I'd try it out. I remember Yuffie said something about the holes closing over after a while so if I don't like it..." He shrugged. Tifa smiled at him.

"It looks good on you." He grinned suddenly.

"A stud for a stud, huh?" Tifa sighed and rolled her eyes at his pun.

"You are getting a fat head Cloud Strife. Now come on, shop with me." Tifa grabbed his arm and scooped up her dropped bag in one motion, dragging him to the nearest stall. Cloud laughed at her antics and saw the hand holding the bag come up to brush against the stone on the necklace.

* * *

**_Present_**

Cloud smiled at the memory, still fingering the stud. Brushing his damp bangs out of the way he saw that the bleeding had stopped almost completely. Quickly he ran his fingers over the rest of his jaw before cupping a double handful of cold water and splashing it in his face, washing away the remnants of the shaving foam on his face.

It had come later when he realised that he loved her, he was sure of that. But he remembered desiring her presence by him for so long... the weeks they spent traveling on the Highwind, the few months they spent in Nibelhiem and all the time since then... He may not have realised that he had fallen for her at that particular moment, but all that meant was that he had been falling for her for along, long time. If only he knew if she could feel the same for him.

_I love him. It's grown over the years from a childish crush on the mysterious boy in my hometown to something so powerful, that still seems to grow every day. It tore at me seeing him with Aeris, though I can't blame her for it. I never expected Cloud to love me or return my feelings any way other than friendship. But it had still hurt, almost as much as the moment when Aeris died. I remember the night we spent together outside the Highwind while everyone else tried to figure out why they were fighting. I woke up sleeping on his shoulder and begged him to let me stay like that a little longer... I think that was the happiest moment of my life..._

Tifa Lockheart rapped her knuckles against the pale wood of their bathroom door and called out to her house mate.

"Cloud! Are you done yet? We need to check over the flock today remember?" Tifa pressed her ear against the wood and heard a disconsolate mumbling emit from the other side, followed by Cloud's answer.

"I'll be down in a minute or two. I just need to... take care of something." Tifa giggled, knowing what the problem was, same as every morning.

"Did you cut yourself again?" More hushed muttering confirmed her suspicions, making her laugh loudly. Abruptly the door swung open in front of her, revealing Cloud wearing some dark grey sweat's and a fluffy pink towel wrapped around his neck, rubbing at his throat gingerly. Tifa tried to stifle her laughter and her blush at the same time.

"It's easy for you women. You don't have these kind of problems. You can at least see your legs when you shave them. I have to give myself whiplash to see some of these places." Cloud complained frowning playfully at the dark haired girl. Tifa rolled her eyes.

"Every other man can do it perfectly well, why can't you? You big baby." A small smile tugged at her lips, the same way it did every time she spoke to Cloud. Unable to fight the urge long she let it blossom onto her face. Cloud held up a finger in response to her question.

"Well, I'm not most men. I'm special." He grinned down at her from under tousled blonde locks. Her smile giving way to a smirk Tifa leant her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, right. That must be it. Hurry up and have breakfast so we can get started." Cloud grinned at her and walked past waving at her over his shoulder.

"Ok, ok. Let me just stick a top on and I'll be down in a minute." Tifa watched him disappear around a corner, scratching at the back of his hair gingerly. His hair had gotten longer she noticed. It was the same style, with the spikes as prominent as ever, but it was hanging down further at the back and sides. He would probably end up getting it cut in one of the nearby towns soon. The glint of his silver earring caught her attention just before he ducked out of sight and she found herself fingering the aquiline stone on it's silver thread chain that hung around her neck. She wore it always, glad it was so durable so she didn't need to worry about it snapping or cracking. It was one of her most precious possessions, because it was given to her by him. She traced her fingers absently against the wall near her arm, thinking about all they had been through together. She still found it hard to believe that they lived together still, and found herself waking up in the middle of the night worrying that he would have left. Cloud was always a sound sleeper so it was easy for her to sneak a peek into his room when she feared he might not be there to smother her uncertainties.

She lived with Cloud Strife, the man she loved more than anything but was too afraid to confess too and even if he didn't feel the same way it was the closest thing to paradise she ever expected to reach. She could still remember the day they had moved into the ranch...

* * *

_**5 months after Sephiroth (19 months ago)**_

"Why did we come out here again?" Tifa sighed and looked over at Cloud who was staring through the windscreen with a puzzled face that suited his question, one hand on the steering wheel and the other elbow propped on the open window.

"Because it's the second fastest way to Junon and you said there wasn't much point taking the boat from Kalm if we were looking for somewhere to live." Cloud was nodding along with her points.

"Yeah, well next time don't listen to what I say. I depend on you to be the voice of reason here Tif." The girl sighed again but couldn't resist the urge to smile. They had left Nibelhiem just over a month ago and were traveling across the world deciding to stop when they found somewhere they liked. Thus far they had covered the Central Continent from Nibelhiem, through Cosmo Canyon and North Coral and had caught the boat at Costa del Sol for Kalm. Both of them had wanted to visit what was left of Midgar before searching the majority of the continent, which is what would have happened if they had caught the boat to Junon instead. So after coming ashore at Kalm and spending a week there getting the supplies they would need for the journey eastwards they had started to make their way from village to hamlet between the city of Midgar and the Mithril mines, after making a short stop over in Midgar. It had only been a few months since the destruction Meteor had wreaked on the city and the survivors were still scratching out a living. But for most, who had lived in the slum sectors in the first place this was nothing new. After saying some good bye's to all the friends they had both lost they moved on.

Cloud had argued that there wasn't much point getting back on the boat and traveling to Junon by sea because it would mean that to travel the continent they would end up back in Kalm anyway. He thought it better to drive up through the Mithril mines and start out on the far side of the mountain range, then travel to Junon. She had agreed, not really realising it would mean spending nearly two weeks in their truck on the way. As much as Tifa loved the old truck from Nibelhiem and Cloud's impulse purchase of it as the only remainder of the home they had both lost, she was starting to feel like a sardine in a four wheel drive can. It seemed the situation was getting to Cloud as well.

She glanced across at her traveling companion through her simple dark shades she had donned to stop the sun blinding her and watched as he scanned the surrounding area carelessly. He was dressed in almost the same outfit he had worn during their travels of the world, sans the thick belt he had worn as past of his Soldier uniform. Citing it as pointless since he had never actually been in Soldier and not as loose as he would prefer he had swapped it for a plain black leather belt, but the purple tunic and baggy pants remained. Having gotten a swordsmith to enhance the materia slots on his Buster Sword he had brought that long as well 'just in case' and it was lying in the back with their packs at the moment.

Aside from his normal attire he had picked up a set of yellow tinted shades in Costa del Sol, with small circular frames. Tifa had thought they looked ridiculous when she had first seen them, but had to admit that they looked good when he was wearing them. They went with his hair nicely.

_'It's a shame they hide the colour of his eyes."_ Tifa blushed faintly at the thought.

At the moment they were perched halfway down his nose since the sun was behind them, leaving him to look over them at the road ahead. Because of the sprawled nature of the continent and the monsters that inhabited it's plains the roads were little more than dirt tracks to let you know you were still going in the right direction.

So far Cloud had done most of the driving, simply because he got travel sick easily unless he was driving and she couldn't drive. He'd given her a few lessons as part of the journey to make sure she was at least capable of driving the vehicle if need be, but he preferred to drive and Tifa was glad to let him. She'd picked up a book in the last village they had stopped for the night in - a romance novel actually - and had worked her way steadily through it during their journey, but the story had gotten a little stale with nothing else to occupy her time so she had decided to give it a rest.

"Hey Tif, how far east do you think we are?" Tifa looked at Cloud who still had his eyes on the road though a thoughtful expression had washed over his face. Tifa, who had not really been paying attention to the navigation shrugged slightly, curious as to his reasons for asking. "Hmm. I was wondering if we were anywhere near the chocobo farm. It's been a while since we looked in on our chocobo's." Tifa's dreary countenance brightened immediately. She loved the chocobo's they had raised on their journey, and was always more than happy to groom and take care of the giant birds.

"Do you think we're near?" She asked, wishing she had paid more attention to the map they had bought in Kalm. Thus far she had been using it only to point Cloud in the right direction rather than to keep strict track of their progress. There hadn't really been much need to really, since they were in no real rush to be anywhere. It was Cloud's turn to shrug.

"Not sure, but if we are we could visit with Bill for a stopover. It's getting pretty late in the day and I know how much you love the birds." Tifa found herself feeling slightly fuzzy at the thought that he had noticed her affection for the creatures.

_'He can tell I love the birds but not that I'm in love with him...' _She sighed quietly, just under the range of Cloud's hearing. She wondered if he was really oblivious or he was just pretending not to know. She honestly not sure which prospect hurt more. She felt herself getting depressed, a feeling that was becoming more and more frequent as she imagined the chances of Cloud ever loving her the way she loved him become slimmer and slimmer. Trying resolutely to set that aside she thought of the chocobo's they had bred together and felt her spirits brighten marginally.

It had turned out that only she and Cloud had any real aptitude with the birds. Barrett was hampered by his gun arm and an innate discomfort around the animals, Red XIII thought his presence was likely to unnerve the creatures, Cid had cursed up a storm when they suggested he help and stating clearly that he barely tolerated human children so he was damned if he was going to look after an overgrown chicken. Yuffie turned out to be alergic to the chocobo feathers, much to the hilarity of Cid and Barrett, and Vincent... well they just hadn't asked Vincent. As soon as they looked like they were about to he just stared at them in a 'I don't think so' kind of way, making his opinion of the exercise clear. The only one left, Cait Sith, was dismissed out of hand because his body was unsuited to the work.

So it had turned out to be only Cloud and her for most of the time. The month or so they had spent breeding the chocobo's had been spent at the chocobo ranch while the others honed their skills in the surrounding countryside and kept watch for any errant Shin-ra patrols the remnants of Shin-ra might have sent into the area, living on the Highwind that Cid had landed not far from the ranch, giving him time to give it a long needed overhaul. In essence she and Cloud had been alone. The only time they really left the ranch were to go into nearby villages to collect supplies and to travel to the Gold Saucer to race the chocobo's they had trained.

Despite the constant threat of meteor looming over them, those times had been some of the best of her life. She had been alone with Cloud and able to spend time with him without fearing that Barrett or any of the others would suddenly drop in like they might have on the Highwind. They had spent nights struggling for Cloud to separate what memories were his and what were Zack's. They had played games to pass the nights when there was nothing else to do - after all they couldn't force the birds to mate, though Barrett probably would have tried at gun point to hurry the process along - so there were plenty of times when they just had nothing to do. Most of this time they would spar together or travel into the countryside to train against the local wildlife. Many of these trips had become impromptu picnics, since they didn't see much point in returning to the ranch for meals. Tifa ended up making them lunch's, since it had become apparent that Cloud could set fire to a pot of water without much effort, both to the exasperation and amusement of the rest of residents at the ranch. She treasured those times, one most of all.

They had encountered a Midgar Zolom battling a pack of around a dozen wolf like creatures. Tifa had been used to acting as the magic user and support fighter, leaving Cloud to doing most of the up front fighting and using the strongest materia combinations because she hadn't had enough energy to activate some of the more powerful magics like Ultima at the time. She had immediately assumed that she was going to take on the wolves and leave the Zolom to Cloud but he had suggested they do it the other way for a change. She had agreed hesitantly.

Defeating the Zolom had been surprisingly easy, and she had gained the Enemy Skill 'Beta' in the process by the time that Cloud had finished mopping up the wolves. He had congratulated her, grinning widely and saying that she was a strong fighter and didn't need to keep playing support all the time. The thought that he respected her fighting abilities had nearly sent her over the moon. She was so used to playing second fiddle to his skills that she had never wondered what he thought of her abilities. His respect meant more to her than she could say. Her resolve had hardened and by the time they had left the ranch she had mastered the Full-Cure materia.

Other nights had been spent playing cards as he taught her card games he had learnt in the Shin-ra, mixing in ones from his memories and ones Zack had spoken to him about but he wasn't completely sure of. Some of the latter worked and some didn't but they had fun finding out. Late night games involving three packs and rules she was convinced he made up spontaneously though he swore blind they were genuine, mingled with quick games of snap - most of which she won and had honestly only suggested because their hands kept meeting over the pack when two cards matched.

They were the happiest times she could remember since before her mother died and the quiet boy she had a crush on had made her a sudden promise and left the cold town of Nibelhiem for Midgar and Soldier.

"Tifa? Anyone home? Hello in there?" Tifa started back to the present when she saw Cloud's hand waving in front of her apparently vacant eyes. Blinking and looking at him in question, she realised that they had arrived in a small village. It was not one she recognised and her heart fell thinking that meant they were still some distance from the ranch. Cloud spoke breaking her out of her thoughts.

"I just asked directions from one of the locals and after he finished trying to sell me a carpet he told the ranch is just twenty minutes north." Tifa laughed and felt her spirits soar again at the news. Cloud shifted gears and adjusted his shades to fit more comfortable on the bridge of his nose, pulling out of the spot he had slipped into to ask directions. Soon they had left the small hamlet behind them and had joined up with a slightly thinner, less travelled dirt road that Tifa was convinced she recognised.

About half an hour later the ranch came into view, though Tifa had to do a double take to be sure it was the same place. The stables had been tripled in length at least and the house had a second story added to it. The water tower hadn't moved but the paddock where the chocobo's had been exercised had doubled in size and was now holding a group of multicolored chocobo, seemingly the ones that she and Cloud had bred, seeing as there were breeds there that were supposed to be upon the verge of extinction. Cloud parked the truck at the side of the paddock and leant out the window to appraise the new buildings.

"Looks like they did some renovation since the last time we were here." He observed, leaving her to nod her head. "You wanna go see the birds or come with me to the house?" Tifa shook her head.

"I'll look in on our flock and see you in a few."

"Herd." Tifa sighed and stuck her tongue out at him.It was one of the things he did. Even the Chocobo Sage couldn't remember which term was correct for chocobo's, flock or herd - but then he could barely remember his own name most of the time - so whichever Tifa used Cloud would 'correct' her and claim it was the other. Chuckling Cloud slid out of the car and closed the door behind him, setting off to the main house and calling to her over his shoulder. "I'll see you in a few ok?" Tifa nodded and gave him a little wave. Watching him wave back and turn to walk away the dark haired martial artist approached the fence that made up the paddock. The birds inside the fenced off area regarded her with curiosity before the pale blue female sqwauked in recognition and ran towards the fence. Leaning into Tifa's shoulder she nuzzled the girl, while Tifa laughed.

"It's good to see you too Azure." Tifa had been present at her hatching and Cloud had suggested she name the young chicobo. She had decided on 'Azure' because it matched her plumage. Soon the other chocobo's had gathered around and 'kwehing' for her attention. After spending some time with the birds and becoming curious at the expanded size of the stables she walked around the paddock and made for the entrance, leaving her 'flock' to return to their quiet grazing.

Ducking into the shadows of the stables Tifa removed her sunglasses and waited a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. The soft cries of young chocobo's were coming from the stalls and she leant over one to have a look at the chicks. She gasped in surprise to find a tiny group of chicks, the same range of colours as the ones outside. Two pale blue, three a soft green and one a jet black with golden eyes. Unlike the ones outside though they were little more than balls of feathery fluff on tiny legs, bobbing gently around to explore their stall and 'kwehing' at each other.

"Looks like you met the newest additions then." Tifa turned to see Chocobo Bill and Cloud entering the stable. Tifa gestured for Cloud to join her quickly.

"Cloud, come look! They're so cute!" The blond man stepped up next to her and leaned on the stall gate and peered over, grinning goofily. Bill stepped up behind them and looked into the stall as well.

"These little fellas are the first hatchlings of the birds you trained. All of them healthy and spry." Cloud and Tifa grinned. Tifa turned from her examination of the chicks and addressed Bill.

"When were they born?" Bill scratched the back of his head as he thought.

"About a couple of weeks ago. We were going to get in touch with you and tell you, but when we tried we found you had disappeared without telling anyone where you were going." He shrugged. "Wasn't much else we could do. We did hold off on naming them though, in case we managed to track you down. I figured you'd want to do that yourself." Tifa grinned and turned back to the chicks. She overheard Cloud talking in the background though.

"When did this place get so big? It hasn't been that long since the last time we were here." Bill chuckled.

"Well, with all that gil you invested with us we could afford the expansion. Besides we decided we'd need to since the chocobo's you bred would start to breed soon enough and we'd need the extra space. As for the house, well the granddaughter wants to research the breeding of rare chocobo's so we built a library for her and Billy on a second floor. The information you brought back from the Sage has sure helped her. We had a lot of books in storage but I never really had the time to read through them. Now she's got them all up there and she and Billy probably know more about the birds then I do now." Cloud made a sound of understanding.

"Well we came out to check on the herd-"

"Flock." Tifa mumbled under her breath, having picked up one of the green bundles of feathers and was petting it softly.

"- and were wondering if you could put us up for a few nights." Cloud finished, either not hearing or pointedly ignoring Tifa's correction. Bill nodded thoughtfully.

"Shouldn't be a problem. We have more bed space now than we used to so it won't be a problem. You eaten yet?" Cloud shook his head. "That's good then. We were all planning to have dinner in about half an hour anyway. You're more than welcome to join." He offered. Cloud glanced at Tifa who nodded her head and answered for them both.

"That would be great."

"Wonderful. Well then I'll let you two change and wash up then. It's good to have you both here again Mr and Mrs Strife." Bill smiled at Cloud and Tifa and turned to leave, wondering through the door to the stables and petting one of the chocobo's that was leaning out of the pen as he passed. Cloud nearly choked on the air and Tifa's eyes widened briefly before she busied herself stroking the tiny chicobo in her arms, feeling it's soft feathers brushing against her fingers to hide her blush. She looked up when she felt Cloud's hand on her shoulder.

"C'mon, lets go eat. We'll be able to spend time with the birds in a bit. Besides we need to think of names for them yet." His face became wry. "And correct a few misconceptions."

Tifa nodded at the suggestion, hiding her desire for it to be anything but a misconception.

"Right."

All the residents of the ranch had assembled by the time that Cloud and Tifa had finished cleaning themselves up. Bill, Billy and Chole were sat at the large table that took up part of the kitchen/dining area waiting for them. Bill and his grandson were in discussion about the benefits of various nuts and herbs on the chocobo training process and the granddaughter, Chole, had her nose in a thick tome. The two visitors sat in the empty chairs and Bill began serving them with a smile, quickly adding a soft admonishment to Chole to put down the book for the duration of the meal. Conversation was light as the eaters were concentrated mainly on the meal rather than talking, but after a while Cloud inquired as to the health of the chocobo's.

"Oh, they're all fine and healthy, like their young ones." He sighed. "With the new additions we've nearly got enough to meet the minimum numbers for a herd on the ranch - that might cause some problems down the line." Tifa looked at him curiously.

"Why is that?" Bill frowned and leant back in his chair.

"Problem is, we don't have that much experience at raising herds of chocobo's because we've never had that many on the ranch before. The dynamics of the herd systems are virtually unknown. We don't really know how to manage a whole herd." The old man shrugged sheepishly and his grandson sighed morosly in agreement. "After you all found out how to re-breed the extinct types of chocobo we kind of made it our unofficial mission to repopulate the rare breeds as much as possible, but we can't do that without more information on the birds." Billy nodded.

"We probably know the most about chocobo's on the planet, well aside from the Sage anyway. But we still don't really know that much. What we really need to do is research the wild flocks all over the world, but we don't have enough man power for that. If we had a couple more people that would free us up to travel with the flocks, instead of being stuck here." Tifa saw Cloud twitch a little as if something had occurred to him. Chole sighed.

"That wouldn't really work, big brother. It would take us ages to train the people who were taking over the ranch from us about the chocobo's. Even the ones we hire from town to watch the birds every year only can't be left alone for more than a week."

"Yeah. And it's not like we can depend on the Sage to take over. He barely remembers his own name so we can't trust him to look after the birds..." Bill nodded.

"It's a shame really. I could do with a change of scenery for a while." Tifa saw Cloud with a look of deep thought on his face, but passed it off as agreement with Billy's assessment. She remembered being with him one time when he tried to get information out of the Sage. Every time he gave out a tidbit of knowledge his memory would give out again. Cloud had taken to bashing his head against the door frame before long. The look of concentration didn't fade until the end of diner, when Cloud insisted on doing the dishes since they were imposing. Bill tried to object but Cloud insisted and Tifa opted to help him.

When they had stayed at ranch before Cloud had volunteered to do the washing often, saying that it was only fair as no one would let him cook. Tifa piled up a few plates and stacked them on the counter near the sink while the others disbursed. Chole had her face in the book before she was three steps away from the table and Bill and Billy had opted to exercise the chicobo's in the pen for a while with the elder birds.

Cloud began washing the crockery while Tifa dried, the same as they had many times before. Cloud seemed distracted though, as if whatever he had been thinking about was still on his mind. Just as she was about to ask him what was wrong he spoke up however.

"Tif, you like the chocobo's right?" Tifa stared at him as if he had asked her whether she enjoyed breathing. Cloud apparently noticed her expression and interpreted it correctly because he grimaced and waved a hand at her placatingly. "What I meant was... how would you like to stay here?" Tifa froze, almost dropping the plate she was drying. Cloud continued.

"I was thinking about what Billy said. I mean we have more than enough experience at breeding the chocobo's. We could run the farm if they wanted to follow the herds and observe them as much as they want. I wanted to ask you before I suggested anything though. So what do you think?" Tifa launched herself at him, hugging him tightly.

"Really! You wouldn't mind?" Cloud chuckled at her exuberance and delicately tried to peel her off him.

"No, not really. I like the birds too. The only other job I'm really suited for is being a mercenary again and I don't want to go back to that." Tifa nodded at him, almost jumping on her toes in excitement. She paused for a second feeling unsure.

"Do you think they'll agree?" Cloud shrugged.

"We'll have to ask to find out." Tifa grinned and hugged him again, despite his protests, as much because she just wanted to hug him as because of his idea..

* * *

**_Present_**

Tifa smiled at the memory. Bill had agreed almost immediately to their suggestion, leaving the two grandchildren dancing around the room when they were told the news. They had stayed an additional two weeks to show Cloud and she the ropes to managing the whole ranch and had then set off for Kalm. From there they had planned to travel to the Central Continent to watch the chocobo's in the wild, before moving onto the Western Continent to continue their research. Everytime they found out something new about the birds they sent word to the two managing the ranch and thus far they had managed to avoid any problems with the growing herd.

Sighing she made her way down the hallway to the doorway and moved out towards the chocobo pen. Since then they had successfully bred the chocobo's they had into a flock three times the size of the original, which was the limit of a full herd. They had released some into the wild, feeling it was safer to do so now that the monsters had mostly died out. The closing down of the Shin-ra Mako reactors had stopped poisoning the countryside, leaving monster levels dropping constantly. The monster sightings on the ranch had dropped sharply since they had arrived. They had seen a few wild chocobo's running across the plains since then, a few black and green ones that they did not recognize, so that meant they were breeding wild as well.

Approaching the pen Tifa leaned over, reaching out her palm for a cerulean chocobo to nuzzle against. Petting the bird absently, Tifa continued to think. Most of their time was spent on the ranch aside from a few infrequent trips into Midgar when they hired in some local help to watch the birds. They were living comfortably off the money they had left over from their travels which didn't seem is if it were going to run out anytime soon, though Cloud felt the need to supplement it occasionally with monster hunting jobs. Tifa always thought he did it to protect the chocobo's in the wild. He saw them as his children almost.

Living here, alone with him... it was almost like they were married. Tifa felt her ruby eyes tear slightly at the errant thought. That would be the only thing that could make her life totally perfect, but she had long given up in the hope Cloud could love her.

_'Not like he did Aeris...'_ She had grown used to the thought that she would be nothing but a friend to Cloud forever, but that still didn't stop her from yearning for him and lying in bed at night sometimes crying herself to sleep because he didn't love her the way she loved him. She wanted to tell him how she felt so much. But never had the strength...

Cloud washed out his cereal bowl, under the cool water and left it on the side to dry. He had hurried through breakfast because he was meant to be helping Tifa out with the birds and she wouldn't be happy with him if he left all the work to her. And because he wanted to be with her. He watched her out the window, standing on one of the lower rungs of the paddock fence petting a sky blue chocobo and waiting for him to turn up. Her dark hair had been left down this morning, rather than in the usual loose ponytail she normally wore for work with the birds. It was shorter than it used to be too. Not long after moving into the ranch she had it cut to just below the middle of her back rather than leaving it to her waist. He thought it looked beautiful on her, though she had blushed and said it was for work with the flock when he had tentatively complemented her.

_'Herd.'_ He corrected himself silently and laughed briefly, before falling back into silence again. It was getting worse, and he hadn't thought that possible. His yearning for her presence, his need to see her smile and laugh. He sighed and scrubbed a hand through his unruly hair, leaning on the sink and watching the girl of his dreams outside. He had almost leaned in to kiss her when he had opened the door to the bathroom. Her scent had filled his head and her red wine eyes had captured him. He had been so close to falling that he almost hadn't cared, but the fear that she would reject him, that he would destroy their friendship beyond repair held him in place, as it had for so long. If he couldn't have her the way he wanted, then he would have to be content to have her as a friend. He knew he couldn't live without her at all, so there was no way he could take the risk.

_'How did we end up like this?'_ He thought, wondering what god had gifted him with the chance to live with Tifa Lockheart, the most beautiful girl in the world, even if it was only as friends...

* * *

_**2 months after Sephiroth (22 months ago)**_

Cloud Strife looked up at the water tower in the middle of the square. It looked so much like the one he remembered, the one he had sneaked out to at night to watch the stars, but he knew it was not. The Shin-ra had duplicated the town after it's destruction by Sephiroth, as part of a cover up and the tower had been re-built along with the rest. As much as he valued the view, he couldn't help feel that the facsimile was completely different from the one he had known as a child, even though it looked exactly the same. Though with his fractured memories he could no longer be sure of that. He watched his breath form small white clouds before his face as the cool air of the winter mountains absorbed the heat. Snow covered the ground and crunched under foot as he fidgeted quietly, trying to maintain some measure of warmth. Cloud had bought new clothes when he moved into the copy of his old house and was feeling glad for it now since the clothes he had worn to travel and fight in would have provided little protection from the harsh, biting wind.

The dark jeans and thick zip up shirt he wore underneath the dark blue long coat were much more suited to ensuring he didn't freeze. Climbing up the rim of the Northern Crater from Icicle Inn had been much, much worse than anything the Nibelhiemien weather would throw at him, but there was no need to take chances. Cloud frowned and looked away from the tower before him. His mood since his return to Nibelhiem, the closest thing he had to a home, had been sour and uncommunicative. Seeing the town again brought back to many memories and kept reminding him that it wasn't really the home he knew.

"Cloud!" The blond man turned to look at the door to Tifa's old house across the square and burst out laughing, his ill mood immediately erased. Tifa stopped a few paces in front of him and leant her fists on her hips glaring at him.

"What's funny?" Cloud had nearly doubled over in laughter and had looked up when her irate voice questioned him, only to begin laughing anew. She was wearing a pair of pale blue jeans that hugged her legs and some stout boots, not too different from the ones she fought in. The rest of her was enveloped in a thick tan coat that hung down to mid-thigh. It had fake fur at the bottom, wrist and around the neck and she was wearing matching fluffy earmuffs. Cloud had to admit it: she looked cute. Well not so cute now that she was glaring at him. Ah, hell with it she was still cute.

"N-nothing Tifa. You just look so... fluffy." Cloud grit his teeth to stop himself laughing harder. He could feel tears prick at the sides of his eyes from the mirth. Eventually his humour died down, though he kept wanting to grin inanely when he looked at the young woman. "Ahem... you ready to go, Tif?" The garnet eyed girl was still glaring at him. Essaying his widest smile he fought valiantly against the bubbles of laughter he could feel working their way up his throat. She 'hmphed' and turned to walk away. Jogging lightly to catch up with her Cloud walked alongside her trying to get her to talk to him again.

"So, where are you dragging me too first?" Tifa darted a flat look at him before continuing in silence. "Er, do you have any places in mind or is it just wandering around till something catches your eye?" Silence. "Tifa?" The raven haired girl continued to ignore him. He rolled his blue eyes discretely and began to grin wolfishly. Leaning over to her casually, he poked her in the side just above the bottom rib eliciting a silent twitch from her. He repeated the procedure and received a startled 'eep' in response. Grinning he continued to poke her repeatedly gaining more and more of a response each time until she was laughing and trying to fend him off ineffectually. After a while he gave up all pretence and began tickling her in earnest. He ran his fingers up her sides while she flailed at him weakly, too distracted by Cloud's tickling to be very effective. After a few minutes of tickling her in the street and thoroughly embarrassing her he stopped and released her, letting her lean against him to regain her breath.

After a while her breathing slowed back to normal and Cloud noticed he had wrapped his arms around her to hold her steady and she had made no move to stand back. Curious he looked down and found her staring up at him, her cheeks stained rose - probably from the cool air. He felt her soft, hot breath on his face and realised what the situation would look like to anyone who was watching.

Moving back a little he smiled weakly.

"Forgive me for laughing at you?" She put a finger to her lips as if thinking and winked. Her other hand poked him firmly in the side, gaining a startled yelp and a stumbled step backwards. An ill placed snow drift caught his feet and made him fall, leaving him sitting in a pile of frosted slush. Grimacing at the sudden onslaught of the cold on his legs and backside Cloud scowled at the smirking girl and scrambling to his feet. Trying to ignore the feel of her eyes he brushed himself down quickly, trying to remove the clinging snow before it soaked through the material of his clothing more than it already had. Eventually he turned back to Tifa, whose eyes were still dancing with mischief.

"Oops. Now I forgive you."

"Thanks." He said wryly, stepping towards her. She beamed at him happily and bounced on her toes.

"No prob." Cloud rolled his eyes and flicked her gently between the eyes, making her blink and pout at him. "Come on, Cloud. We've got shopping to do. It hardly ever snowed in Midgar and I need to buy some more winter clothes." Cloud sighed.

"Ok, ok lets go." Tifa grinned and spun around, making her long dark hair swish around her like an ebony fan. Cloud returned to walking alongside her, willing to settle with a frozen backside for Tifa laughing.

Despite the frigid weather there were still some people walking the streets of Nibelhiem. This weather, though inhospitable, was seasonal in the mountain town and was something Cloud remembered from his youth. The time he had spent in the relatively mild winters in Midgar which had only occasionally featured snow had lessened his resistance to the harsh cold of his hometown. From the way his smaller companion was shivering despite her thick coat it seemed that the sentiment was mutual.

Still there was only a few people wandering the streets and most of them regarded the two with scepticism and suspicion. All the residents of the town were ex-Shin-ra employees who had been brought in to aid with the deception that Nibelhiem had never been destroyed. As such both Cloud and Tifa felt ill at ease around them. Cloud was beginning to think that returning to Nibelhiem had been a bad choice. Cloud noticed that Tifa had moved closer to him out of discomfort, an unease that Cloud had begun to share. It had gotten to the point that Cloud disliked leaving his house, because his hair began to stand on end every time he passed one of the people who lived in the town. The towns people were just as uncomfortable around him. Many of them remembered him as the man who had stood against Shin-ra, their ex-employer.

Striding through the streets and trying to ignore the fact that people crossed the street when they saw him coming, the blond warrior noticed that Tifa's bright expression had dimmed into one of depression.

"Cloud..." Her voice was tiny in the chill air. He looked down at her in surprise. She was almost pressed against his side, she was so close. "Do you think it was a good idea to come back here?" Cloud stiffened. Despite his uncertainties about returning to the town, he had put up with it thus far because Tifa was here. Out of all those he had battled Sephiroth with he was closest to her. Their decisions to return to their hometown had not been discussed with each other, though Tifa had been overjoyed to hear that those were his intentions. Cloud admitted to himself that he was happy with the arrangement. He certainly did not want to live by himself and had only chosen to live in the mountain town because he had no where else to go. The fact that Tifa was returning to Nibelhiem as well had buoyed his spirits, though now that he thought about it he had never really told her that.

The prospect of Tifa leaving Nibelhiem meant that the only thing keeping him here aside from apathy and lack of better prospects would be gone.

"I'm not so sure it was Cloud. I mean... it doesn't feel like the home I remember anymore... like everything's fake." Tifa angled her head away from Cloud's gaze before continuing in a near whisper. "I was staring at the water tower last night... and it didn't feel the same. I saw that tower every day I lived here, and every night in my dreams after I left. I remember the feeling of that water tower like my own reflection. And it doesn't feel the same anymore." Tifa finally looked up to meet Cloud's mako eyes again, making him realised that they had stopped walking.

"It's not the same Cloud! This isn't the home that I remember! It's all fake!" Her voice had cracked and Cloud thought he heard tears in her words. "All the people... it's like their scared of us! They avoid me all the time and I can barely get them to speak a word to me. It's like... it's like it's not my home anymore." Cloud remained silent. He could count the times he had seen Tifa cry on the fingers of one hand. At her mother's funeral which his family had attended, because his mother and her parents were close, at her father's death at Sephiroth's hand and a few quiet tears after Aeris died in the Forgotten Capital. Perhaps a few more. He had not expected the awkward situation in Nibelhiem to have affected her this badly. On the other hand she was far more connected to the town than he was. After all Cloud had spent most of his time yearning to get away from Nibelhiem. Perhaps it was natural it would have more of an impact on her than it had on he.

"I don't think I can stay here." Cloud's breath caught at her whispered words. He almost didn't hear her next spoken thoughts he was still reeling from the thought of living in Nibelhiem without Tifa to keep him sane. If she wasn't here then there really wasn't any need for him to be. "If I... leave... would you come with me?" Her voice was tiny, almost silent, as if she was unsure whether she wanted him to hear or not. Cloud looked down at her and found her standing before him with her hands clasped in front of her chest, waves of raven hair hiding her face from view. What was she asking him? To leave Nibelhiem with her? Or something else? Cloud shook his head, glad she was not looking at him or she might have misinterpreted the gesture as an answer to her question. She certainly couldn't be asking _that._ He would have wanted her to ask him that so much once, before he left, but now... but now what? Would he be so sorry if that had indeed been what she was asking?

"I mean... I don't want to be wandering across the world alone..." Cloud heard her words and felt something die in himself before it had even been birthed. Dismissing the confusion he felt as foolish he looked down at Tifa again, ignoring the pedestrians who were warily making their way past in wide berths.

"Yeah. I think I will. It doesn't feel the same as the home I remember it being to me either." He sighed. "I don't really want to stay here." He smiled down at Tifa, who had tilted her head back to look at Cloud finally as he began to speak. A smile blossomed on her pale face and she ploughed into Cloud, hugging him fiercely. Cloud, feeling intensely uncomfortable, loosely draped his arms around her back in response, trying not to tense unduly.

'_We've got no plan, no destination and no transport. But I'll be with her.'_ Curiously that last thought overrode the first three. Cloud Strife was unsure how he felt about that. Tifa pushed herself away from Cloud hurriedly, blushing fiercely.

"Sorry about that.. I just..." She shrugged uncomfortably. Cloud chuckled weakly.

"No problem." Tifa ducked her head again.

"So.. I suppose we should buy some things for the journey.. and clothes." A small grin had crept onto the black haired girl's face. Cloud returned it as best he could. "Let's go then, Cloud." Cloud nodded, but watched her walk off some way without following, staring at the slate grey sky above in thought.

It began to snow.

* * *

**_Present_**

Cloud stared out at the paddock, watching Tifa pet the chocobo and remembered the feelings he had almost had when she asked him to leave Nibelhiem with her. Perhaps that had been it.

_'Did I realize it then? Was it that long ago that I realised I couldn't live without her?'_ The blond man shook his head, his eyes never leaving the form of his silent love as she tucked an errant lock of her hair behind her ear.

Tifa tucked a long lock of ebony hair behind her ear absently, staring up at the clear blue sky above her. It was so different here from the cold winter's of Nibelhiem. Even in the summer the cold air still washed down from the mountains, making the season cool and damp often. It rarely snowed on the Eastern Continent, meaning that even though winter was approaching she might have seen snow for the last time in a long while.

_'I last saw it with him before we left. I wonder if he remembers? I wonder if he cares. I wonder... why he can't love me?'_

_

* * *

_

_**2 months and two weeks after Sephiroth (21 months and two weeks ago)**_

Snow and ice crunched under her boots as she levered her aching body further up the slope and along the path. Cloud strode alongside her, expressionless and his icy eyes hard as agates. Tifa couldn't help but look at the huge sword he carried, strapped to his back. The Buster Sword. The first one she had ever seen him use. It's materia slots were very limited, but Cloud said it would do the job it was needed to do today and he could see a weaponsmith about extending it's materia capacity in the next town. He didn't trust the residents of Nibelhiem. The frozen wind howled through the mountains, making the sound of groaning, the sounds one of the things that had given rise to the belief that the dead lived beyond the grey unforgiving peaks. Despite the earmuffs that Cloud had enjoyed mocking her ears were beginning to sting from the cold air, though he showed no signs of discomfort.

They had decided to leave the town nearly two weeks ago and had spent the time since setting what little affairs they had in order and buying supplies for the trip. On an impulse Cloud had bought the decrepit truck that had lain at the town entrance since either of them could remember and had it fixed up and made road worthy. It was the only thing that had survived the fire two years ago, and thus the only thing in Nibelhiem that they were truly connected to anymore. She was glad they would be able to bring it with them. A few days ago Cloud had asked her if she wanted to visit her parents graves before they left. She had replied that she had planned to go the day before they departed... and then asked him if he wanted to join her. His mother's grave marker was up here as well, but in reality she had only asked because she wanted his company. She didn't want to visit their graves alone and she never felt alone when Cloud was near. He had been reluctant, but had eventually acquiesced. Which was why they were trudging through the frozen lower paths of Mount Nibelhiem. Tifa didn't know how old the graveyard was, but it spanned a field at the bottom of the mount. In summer it was covered in grass and in winter a blanket of snow, but it was out of the path of the harshest weather so the grave markers survived longer than they would have if they were exposed to the elements.

They had arrived at the entrance to the graveyard, it's black wrought iron gates open to visitors. Cloud strode through the metal arch without hesitation and then stopped, waiting for Tifa. They had only been attacked once, by a small flock of Harriers. Cloud had killed two effortlessly and the others had fled in alarm. Despite the shutting down of the mako reactor the monsters still held most of the peaks in their grasp. Tifa would have felt uncomfortable if they had intended to go any higher. Seeing that Cloud was uncertain where the markers they had come to visit stood, she set off among the rows of knee high cylindrical grave stones, the names of the deceased engraved on each. Cloud would not know where his mother's lay, having never been to the graveyard after her death in the fire. She silently gestured to his mother's first before continuing to hers, thankful that Cloud had fallen behind in silent contemplation of his mother's marker. There were some things she couldn't say to her parents if she wasn't alone. Especially if she was with Cloud.

A few feet further and she stood before the worn engravings of her parents names. Shivering in the chill, she crouched down in front of the stones wishing her jeans posed more protection against the wind. The carved letters of her mothers name were almost erased by now, while her father's were still relatively fresh. She removed her right glove and traced her fingers over the worn writing of their names slowly, letting the digits find the grooves of the carving in the cold stone. Pausing to look over her shoulder to find out where Cloud was standing she began to whisper to the spirits of her parents, the way she had done the day before she left Nibelhiem for Midgar. Cloud was still silently towering over the stone that marked his mother's passing.

"Hi Mom. Hi Dad. I know it's been a while, but... stuffs happened. More than I can talk about now and I probably won't get the chance to do this again for a while so I'll just talk about the important stuff. I'm moving away. It just doesn't feel like home here anymore. Everything is the same as it was, but it's still different. It's not the Nibelhiem I knew. So I'm leaving. Cloud is coming with me. You remember Cloud? Mr's Strife's son?" She glanced over her shoulder hurriedly and found he hadn't moved. "He's... not the same as he used to be. It's like he's wounded and he's still getting used to the injury - still learning to live with it." Tifa found herself fighting back a small sob. "It's because he lost.. her. He loved her. I'm not surprised. I couldn't compare to her. I never had a chance." Quickly she wiped her eyes free of the gathering tears.

"I used to hear him wake up at night - when we were on the Highwind. He had nightmares all the time, but when I asked what they were about he would always say he couldn't remember." Despite her efforts she dissolved into tears, gritting her teeth to stifle the sobs wracking her body. If Cloud turned to see her he must have thought she was crying over her parents. "Why did I have to fall in love with him? Why? Why couldn't... why couldn't he love me instead of her?" She didn't try to speak anymore after that. After a while the tears stopped and she didn't feel so weak anymore. Climbing to her feet she turned to regard Cloud.

It seemed he hadn't moved from his position over the single marker. His mother alone was buried there. His father had disappeared just after his birth. No one talked about it, and her father had told her it wasn't something people talked about when she had asked as a child. Cloud had no memory of him. Tifa clutched at herself forlornly. Cloud's memories were a painful topic for him. He still had difficulty sometimes unravelling the ones he had incorporated from Zack and the ones that were his own. Once or twice he had been telling her stories when they were travelling on the Highwind and had stopped suddenly. His eyes had clouded over and she could almost see him searching for the memories, following the thread he had been travelling along to either find it severed or some proof that it wasn't one of his own. Each time, he had made some joke about it. And Tifa had laughed, no matter how forced the joke.

She remembered asking him whether or not he would join her if she left Nibelhiem:

_"Yeah. I think I will. It doesn't feel the same as the home I remember it being to me either." _ He had frowned and sighed as soon as he had said it and she could almost hear him asking if the memories of his home town could really count for anything - how much he could trust their worth. She wondered suddenly if he could even remember the mother whose grave he stood over. After his mental collapse and subsequent immersion in the Lifestream she didn't know what memories were intact and what had shattered.

"Good bye, Mom. Good bye, Dad." Slowly Tifa picked her way to the entrance not wanting to intrude on Cloud's privacy. After a few minutes he turned and joined her. "You took a while." She said not wanting to walk in silence but not wanting to ask what he had been thinking about either.

"Just saying good bye." Tifa nodded. His jaw didn't unclench until they had been walking for at least five minutes. Tifa looked over her shoulder, where she could still see the foreboding iron gates, black iron clear against the pure white of the snow.

"Why do we do it?" Cloud turned to her, his eyes softer for the first time all day, perhaps startled by her question.

"Do what?" Tifa sighed.

"Why do we revisit the dead again and again? It's not like they know we come." Cloud shook his head.

"I don't think we do it for them. I think we do it for us." Tifa looked at him curiously. He didn't turn to her but continued to talk anyway. "I was told by Yuffie that the word for 'truth' in an ancient Wutaian dialect literally meant 'memory'. Our memories hold the truth of what happened in the past for us, because no one else could see the events the same way we do. Erecting a grave marker is having a place to go and remember the people in the graves. To remember the truth about what they meant to us." Cloud trailed off into silence. Tifa couldn't stand to look at him. What use was visiting a grave to remember the person within it if you weren't sure what you were recalling really happened? Where was the truth for you then?

_'I'll always be here Cloud. I'll always remind you that your memories are real. I'll never leave you as long as you want me. I can't leave you, Cloud Strife.'_

The rest of the journey back to Nibelhiem was in silence.

* * *

**_Present_**

Tifa jumped at the feel of a hand on her shoulder and spun in surprise. Her sudden motion made her slip off the wooden rung she had been balanced on and left her stumbling into Cloud. She felt his arms instinctively wrap around her to stop her fall and gasped quietly. Quickly finding her feet on the floor, she was reluctant to step out of his accidental embrace, her memories of his pain bringing the desire to comfort him back in a wave. Ironic that she found herself comforted by his embrace instead. Stepping back a few seconds after she could have, she blushed as he grinned playfully down at her.

"Daydreaming, huh?" Her blush intensified and he chuckled. Tifa reasoned through her shock that if he thought being embarrassed about being caught off guard caused the blushes, then so much the better. Shrugging silently she tried to avoid his amused eyes. "Anyway, lets go. We have work to do right?" Tifa nodded still feeling the aftereffects of the blushes on her face. Cloud chuckled again and turned away, heading off to the stables ahead of her.

"C'mon slowpoke! Time to work!" Tifa couldn't help but smile as she followed him quickly.

_'I love you Cloud Strife, but I'm not brave enough to tell you yet.'  
_

_**End Part I.**_


	2. Part II

_Well after far too long I am finally updating my Final Fantasy VII fic. I never intended it to take this long, but I always promised myself that I'd finish it eventually. I figure now is as good a time as any. To the people who reviewed I thank you and hope this second and finishing instalment will be as well received as the first was._

_You know I don't own it._

**Memories**

Part II: Sapphire Soul

**_Present_**

Cloud stepped out of the sun into the cool interior of the stables, smiling at the sounds of soft 'kwehing' and the rustle of feathers that filled the building. Tifa entered behind him, skipping towards the small section of stalls they had set up for use as a hatchery, squealing quietly as she leant over the railing and plucked a small cobalt ball of fluff out off the straw.

"They're so cute!" Cloud sighed. He would have never expected her to have such a girly side to her. She certainly hadn't seemed it back during the Meteor incident. But the time she spent with the birds was frequently interspersed with affectionate petting as well as work. It was readily apparent that all the birds loved her. Probably because she had fussed over them so much when they were chicks. Leaning back on the wooden crossbeam behind him Cloud thanked the guardian spirits that the Chocobo's gestated shockingly fast and it was proving so easy to repopulate the decimated species. They had been getting more coloured chicks than regular recently.

Feeling a hard beak prod his shoulder gently Cloud turned his head to find Bell, a female green, butting him softly in a request for attention. Chuckling he lifted a hand and delicately ruffled her head plumage, grinning widely when she moved her head into his hand to adjust it's position to one she found more comfortable. Absently he continued to run his fingers through her feathers as he reclaimed his lost trail of thought. The dynamics of the flock-

_'Herd.'_ He grinned.

-Were not hard to keep up with. At first it had been though that colour indicated status in some way and that gold chocobos (which were still rare) were always the herd leaders. Without any left in the wild it was impossible to say either way, but it had seemed a safe assumption. However, careful study of the herd had shown that it seemed the dominant pair were always the ones with the most young. Since Chocobo's mated for life it meant that the position of dominant birds in the group could be changed at any time. Another clutch of eggs could mean that one couple had replaced another. The benefits of this weren't really clear but it seemed that their colour had nothing to do with their status in the herd.

The little blue chick in Tifa's arms was chirping happily and rubbing it's small face against Tifa's cheek. She had named it Reef - she ended up naming most of the birds at their hatchings, Cloud being unimaginative when it came to such things - and it was one of their latest hatchlings. It seemed that the methodology for breeding the birds that the absent minded Sage had provided them with originally was far from complete. According to the parentage of the little bundle of feathers, a blue and green, it should have been born a black. When they had told Bill and Billy about this the younger of the two had suggested that the genetics of the chocobo's were more complex than had originally been assumed. The Sage's guide would work well in the beginning but after that some genes would be dominant and some would become recessive. Until they catalogued many more hatchings it seemed that it was going to be random. Thus far they had received just about equal amounts of blues, greens and blacks. The yellows had dropped in number slightly and they had only two golds.

They had found out the hard way that breeding the two golds together, since they had been of opposite sex anyway, did not necessarily produce another gold. The first chick the female had laid had been a black. She also laid with much less frequency than the other colours. It seemed that golds were always going to be a rarity.

"Cloud!" The blond man looked up, his attention drawn by the woman standing before him, still holding the fluffy azure sphere. He grinned at the scene.

_'She'd make a great mother.'_ A twinge of pain lanced him at the thought, though he managed to keep it from showing on his face. It reminded him too much of what he couldn't have, no matter how much he wanted it. He patted Bell's curved beak reassuringly one last time and stepped away from the stall towards the radiant woman.

"You finished spoiling your chicks now?" He grinned wryly, tilting his head to the side. Tifa glared half heartedly at him and cocked a fist, the other cradling her little companion.

"Don't make me pound your spiky head Cloud Strife. Now come here!" She chirped, as cheery as the birds she cared for. Feeling his grin stretch even more he felt the urge to laugh with joy bubble up from within him. He was here with Tifa, the woman he loved more than anything else and nothing was wrong. No one was trying to kill them, no one was trying to hunt them down. They were just there together. All this time and he was still getting used to it. Joining her by the little pen he hunkered down on the top of the swinging door and examined the multicoloured chicks frolicking in the hay that coated the floor, giving them somewhere comfortable to sleep.

Tifa leant over and placed the tiny bird back into the straw, showing off her shapely body in the process - though Cloud tried desperately not to notice - where it chirped at her once before joining it's brothers and sisters in whatever game they were playing.

"They're so cute don't you think?" Cloud sighed and struggled to wrestle the grin off his face. Here they went again.

"..Hmm. Couldn't say really." Even trying his hardest it was a difficult endeavour to sound indifferent. Tifa turned her attention to him and levelled a flat glare, obviously not fooled in the slightest.

"Uh huh. You think they're cute. You know you think they're cute. More importantly _I_ know you think they're cute. Would it kill you to say it?" She leant to the side and rested one hand on her hip. Biting the inside of his cheek to keep from giving himself away Cloud shrugged, not meeting her wine coloured eyes since he knew he wouldn't be able to keep up the act if he did. This game was one they played nearly every day.

"There's a good possibility that if I did admit such a thing, which incidentally isn't true, that yes, it would indeed kill me. It's not a risk I'm willing to take." Tifa snorted, derision mixing with humour.

"Well, surprisingly enough Mr. Stoic Mercenary, I'm perfectly willing to risk it. Exactly why can't you admit that they're cute?" He could hear the laughter in her voice and ran a hand through his hair to buy himself some time to gather his wits.

"It's just not manly. There are certain things that real men cannot do. If I were to admit that I thought something... cute, then I would be denying my heritage as one of the most manly of men." Tifa was agape, dumbstruck by his speech, though Cloud was pretty sure he was tasting blood, his teeth now sinking too far into his cheek for his own comfort. Cloud continued, pleased he had managed to shock his partner so thoroughly. "In addition it was basic training when I joined the Shin-Ra." Tifa's eyebrow jerked upwards sceptically, her expression showing that she was still stunned by Cloud's uncharacteristic self-aggrandisement. "It's true," He insisted. "The first thing they said to us when they lined us up is that from then on we were soldiers. And there were certain things that soldiers can't do. It's just not soldierly."

"Soldierly?" Tifa seemed to be enthralled by his little story. That or about to collapse if her swirling eyes were any indication.

"Mmm. But even if my years of training were to be disregarded, it would still be impossible for me to forsake my manliness in such a manner!" As soon as he finished the sentence Cloud ran through a series of extravagant poses he remembered one of his old comrades using to try and impress a young female secretary. No doubt they had looked better on his muscle ridden body but that wasn't the point. Letting out exaggerated grunts every time he shifted poses, Cloud soon finished in a highly impractical one footed stance with his arms splayed out to the side and the other foot extended. He flashed a brain-fried Tifa the cheesiest grin he could muster and followed it up with a wink.

Tifa burst out laughing, shattering Cloud's act. He loved her laugh. It sounded like the wind chimes she insisted on putting up around the house. He was grinning now, unable to help himself. Tifa was still giggling, holding her stomach and trying to control herself. Eventually she leant on the railing beside him as he relaxed again.

"That is quite possibly the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Seriously." Cloud shook his head chidingly.

"It's true though." He was trying for the most patronizing tone possible and hoping Tifa wouldn't smack him around the head for mocking her. "I mean, have you ever heard Cid call anything cute?" The raven haired beauty next to him snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Cid probably spends his spare time using bunnies for target practice or something. Probably isn't a sensitive bone in his body." Cloud restrained the urge to make a puerile joke, silently cursing the recollections of his fellow soldiers and their taste for off-colour humour. That was one set of memories he could have lived without.

"Fine, even discounting Cid's... unique nature," Tifa giggled again. "what about Vincent then? You'll never see him saying something's cute." Tifa threw her hands up in exasperation.

"Oh come on! That is so unfair! Vincent wouldn't know cute if it bit him on the ass! And even if cute did bite him on the ass, he'd shoot it!" Cloud grinned at the mental image.

"Well there you go then. Vincent and Cid. Both two fine upstanding examples of manliness." Briefly Cloud winced at the idea of putting both of his former team mates in the same group as himself, even if it was only in jest. It probably wasn't doing him any favours. Tifa snapped her fingers triumphantly.

"What about Barret? He said things were cute for Marlene all the time! What's your explanation for that Cloud Strife, o manliest of all men?" Cloud pretended not to hear the sarcasm and preened under the apparent compliment, much to Tifa's disgust.

"Barret?" Cloud grunted and turned back to watching the chicks play. "That guy's a few cartridges short of a full clip." Tifa choked back another laugh and slapped his shoulder.

"Don't say thing like that about Barret!" Cloud shrugged and rotated his shoulder absently, noting that she had gotten stronger.

"It's true! Did you know he actually kept that sailor suit he had to dress up in so he could use it to sleep in? He looks like a giant marshmallow every night! I hear Marlene has a phobia now!" His companion gave up trying to hold back the laughter and collapsed back onto the front of the stall, using it to hold herself up.

Tifa sighed and fell into him, leaning on his shoulder as if she had collapsed in despair, much like in the animes she made him watch with her. Cloud tried to ignore the fact that they were touching so closely and revel in it at the same time, not really giving a damn about just how little sense that made.

"Fine." She sighed again loudly, for no other reason than making sure Cloud knew she was exasperated. "Lets get to work. You can be "an epitome of manliness" and still work right?" Cloud nodded, disappointed that there wasn't a reason for her to stay like that, leant against him for a while longer. But she didn't move for a few more seconds and the only sound in the stables was there quiet breathing and the soft 'kwehing' of the chocobo's around them. Eventually Tifa stood up and began to walk deeper into the stable. It had become their habit to check on the chicks then start at the back and work their way forward. As he stood to follow her she remarked casually over her shoulder.

"They are cute though." Distracted by the lack of her warmth on his arm he nodded, his mind elsewhere..

"Yeah, they are pretty cute."

"HA! Got you!" Tifa spun and pointed at him, hopping up and down victoriously. Cloud cursed lightly, realising what he had just walked into. Turning to face the young woman, who would no doubt tease him about this for weeks now, he groaned quietly. But still... it was probably worth it to see her smile. Waving his hand lazily at her and acknowledging his defeat he sighed.

"Yeah, fine, fine you win." His voice dropped into a mutter he was fairly sure she'd hear. "Evil woman..."

"Say something, Cloud Strife?" Her features suddenly didn't look quite as accommodating as they had a second ago. He looked up beaming innocently.

"Not at all Tif. Just mumbling about it being a nice day is all."

"Uh huh. C'mon. Work." Cloud felt the uncharacteristic urge to whine.

Watching her work out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the dull golden light in the stable dapple over her hair and the small aquiline stone he had bought her in Midgar. It sparkled like the sun on the sea. Her favourite colour.

**_

* * *

_**

**_27 months and three weeks ago (3 months and 1 week before the battle with Sephiroth)_**

Cloud ducked his head, trying to avoid making eye contact with the sailors that ran past him preparing for the docking that would take place within the next hour. The ship from Junon was bustling with activity again after a lull during the journey. He would have to find a way to retrieve his gear later on, maybe after everyone else had disembarked and the cargo hold was quieter. As it was he had decided there was too much commotion in the hold for him to consider collecting his sword and armour until later. He had seen Tifa on the far side of the hold, having a far harder time than he of hiding her identity, come to the same conclusion and was fairly sure everyone else felt the same way.

He felt his face shape itself into a wry smile. The last thing they needed after all was Barret running amok while they were still stuck at sea with no way to escape if they needed to. Shaking his head he made his way to the back of the ship, where he had met up with the rest of the team earlier. Slipping his hand into his pants pocket he withdrew a deep crimson orb that shone dully in the light. Bringing it up to his face he examined it as he walked, always checking to be sure he wasn't being watched by anyone. This new summon materia was dimmer than the others they had acquired and had less of a sheen to it. It seemed that they shone more the greater power they had acquired. The ChocoMog materia for example was much brighter, due to the little training excursion the team had taken after they met Yuffie.

Seeing the Midgar Zolom impaled on a tree back at the marshes had made it clear to Cloud that no matter how much he wanted to defeat Sephiroth, he wasn't strong enough just yet. Perhaps all of them together weren't strong enough yet. As such they had taken a brief detour on the way to Junon from Condor Mountain and used the time to train. They might not be strong enough just yet, but they couldn't afford to wait much longer. Sephiroth was still ahead of them. It seemed the training had paid off though. The Jenova creature they had fought only a few minutes ago had proved to be of little problem, and an easy victory. One which had paid off it seemed. Tossing the red ball absently in his hand, he found himself on the deck, feeling the sea wind in his face and tasting the gentle spray on his lips. Stepping out onto the wooden expanse he slipped the summon materia back into his pocket and strode across the deck to the far side, hoping if he stood in the shadows on the other side of the deck he would go un-remarked upon until the made landfall.

Striding across the deck he found it curiously deserted. Shrugging and choosing not to question the good luck he seemed to have acquired, Cloud continued, only to stumble to a stop upon seeing another figure standing in the shadows he had been heading for. Dressed in the white uniform of the ship's crew, in the same way as himself, the figure stood leaning on the railing and seemingly examining the sea. Cloud hesitated, unsure what to do. There was a chance it was one of his group – well, not Red or Barret since both had bodies that looked nothing like this one – but he didn't want to risk raising the alarm if it was just one of the regular crew members skipping the work he should be doing. Finally shrugging to himself and deciding to hurry out of plain sight he continued to approach the figure, reassured that he could knock out who ever it was before they made too much fuss if it was just a lazy sailor he found. Stepping up to the side of the motionless body he felt his body tense, as it always did when there was a possibility of battle, only to relax abruptly when ruby red eyes swung to blink at him, startled.

It was almost hilarious how Tifa, with one of the most feminine bodies he had ever seen, could pass for a man if her hair was bundled up under a cap and her curves hidden under baggy clothing. He nodded to her and smiled slightly, leaning on the rail next her. She grinned hugely and relaxed abruptly.

"Cloud! I almost didn't recognise you with the hat on." He considered making a sarcastic comment but decided against it seeing as he hadn't noticed who she was until she turned to look at him either. Instead he made a quite noise of acknowledgement. Undeterred by his silence Tifa giggled quietly. "Without the hair you blend in so much easier, 'Spike'." Cloud specifically refrained from twitching at the nickname Barret had so kindly bestowed upon him. Sighing quietly instead he moved his attention to the sea stretched out behind the ship, searching absently for any signs of the Eastern Continent they had left behind. Tifa fell silent at his side and did the same, though when Cloud glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes he noted that her attention was focused on the water being churned out from beneath the ship rather than the horizon. He sighed again, figuring that he had disappointed her with his silence.

Unlike some thought his silence wasn't born from a desire for solitude. He just _really_ sucked at small talk. But it couldn't be said that he didn't try and he didn't want to disappoint Tifa. She was one of the few friends he had left.

"Did you see any of the others?" Tifa looked up, her attention back on him and Cloud could see wisps of her long raven hair escaping the cap that was trying to hold back her tresses and fluttering around her face. She looked surprised and he wondered somewhat sadly if it was that unusual for him to try and talk to her.

"Er, no." She said haltingly. "I haven't seen them since we split up after the fight with the… thing." Cloud nodded. In truth he wasn't sure what to call the enemy they had fought either, even though his Sense materia had labelled it 'Jenova Birth'. Tifa stood straighter and turned to him, trying to keep part of her attention on the deck, not wanting to be surprised again.

"Are you worried about them?" She asked, adjusting her position in the shadows so that she was better hidden as she spoke. Cloud smiled wryly. Her movement meant that if anyone did notice someone lingering in the shadows it would be him they saw. She grinned back at him, noticing his amusement. Rolling his eyes he turned back to the sea, leaving her to keep a look out.

"Some of them, yeah. If things go wrong now it would be a pain to have to fight everyone on the ship." He heard her quiet murmur of agreement. There was a few seconds of silence - just enough to throw him slightly when she spoke again, to make him wonder if this was still part of the saw conversation.

"Are you worried about Aeris?" He blinked, before shaking his head.

"No. She isn't a great fighter, but she can keep her head. She'll be fine. I'm more worried about Red. How he's managed to go unnoticed so far is lost on me." Tifa laughed quietly. "And then there's Barret." Tifa jerked upwards.

"What's wrong with Barret?" Cloud turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

"The man has a gun fused to his arm and hates the Shin-Ra, the company whose boat we are hiding on and are surrounded by. I was half debating whether or not it would have been a better idea to tie him up and leave him in the hold for the journey." Tifa giggled. Cloud found himself smiling softly. He hadn't really known Tifa could giggle. Aeris he expected it from, but from Tifa it came as a surprise. He wasn't sure why. He decided it suited her.

The ebony haired girl repositioned herself on the railing again, this time looking toward the horizon like himself and not at the churning mass off water below there feet as she had been before. They stood in silence for a time, both content to watch the distant horizon and the clear blue sky in the quiet that had fallen. Cloud had exhausted his stock of small talk and Tifa seemed content with the lack of conversation. There wasn't really time to be idly chatting anyway. Soon the ship would dock and then they would be seeking Sephiroth again. Despite his tendencies towards silence and his opinion that pointless chatter was a waste of time, Cloud still regretted that he had not had much time to spend with Tifa. But most of his time was spent with Aeris, seeing as she was the weakest fighter and he had been hired as her bodyguard, if perhaps for somewhat dubious payment. And perhaps for other reasons. But that was still _very_ uncertain.

All these things in addition to the frantic pace at which they travelled had seemingly conspired to refuse Cloud any time to spend peacefully with Tifa. By the time the group was finished setting up camp for the night it was often all they could do to eat and crawl somewhere to sleep. They were pushing themselves harshly, yet despite their little detour for training and the fact that Sephiroth still had the lead on them and Cloud couldn't help but wonder why they always seemed to be so far behind. The white haired former Soldier wasn't on the ship, but the last time the cargo vessel had crossed the ocean had been over a fortnight ago according to the roster he had glanced at in the Shin-Ra headquarters at Junon. That meant that, barring actually having found another way across the ocean, Sephiroth was at least two weeks ahead of them. If they didn't find any kind of indication of his presence when they made land fall it would take even longer to track him down.

"What's wrong Cloud?" The blonde man turned to face his companion, surprised to find his face locked into a scowl and his fingers gripping the railing tightly. Forcing himself to relax, he shook his head, trying not to be as curt as he felt. Tifa lowered her eyes again. After a moments pause she looked back up.

"I've always loved the sea, y'know?" Cloud blinked at her. He had not, in fact, known that. She cocked her head to the side slightly and more raven dark hair escaped the small white sailor hat she had 'borrowed'. "Did I never tell you?" Cloud shook his head, absently recalling that they really hadn't talked that much about that kind of thing as children. Tifa's eyes drifted back to the seemingly endless aqua expanse.

"My family and I came to the seaside once or twice when I was really small. It was when my mom was still alive. We stayed in one of the shore towns south of Nibelheim." Tifa smiled, a trifle sadly. "I used to love waking up to the sound of the sea. I remember thinking it was the most soothing sound in the world. It's my favourite colour as well." Cloud raised an eyebrow. Everyone had their own opinion, but he never saw anything spectacular about the dull darkness of the oceans like the one they were sailing on now. It appeared that Tifa saw his scepticism.

"Not this colour!" She laughed. "This is too dull! No, I mean the kind of colour you get in shallow water when there's sand at the bottom. That really bright aqua colour." Cloud privately admitted that he thought that was a much nicer colour than the flat navy blue of the deep seas. "I always loved that colour." Tifa smiled softly, her eyes glazed with memories and obviously not on the scene in front of her anymore. She turned a smile brighter than the sun on the young man beside her.

"What about you Cloud?" He looked at her, slightly bemused by her question. What about him? She giggled again. "What's your favourite colour?" Cloud blinked. He had never really thought about it. As he considered her question a sharp wind ripped across the deck, snapping the precariously hanging cap off of Tifa's head and splaying her long raven hair out behind her, prompting a surprised squeak. Cloud's eyes were riveted to her ruby red orbs widening in sudden surprise as she looked at him. The hat was whipped off the deck and away on the suddenly harsh breeze. Cloud stared at her, with her dark hair coiling around her shoulders and her wine hued gaze locked with his own. A few hours ago he probably said that his favourite colour was bright forest green. It still was, but that didn't mean he didn't appreciate other colours… like reds….

"So what is it Cloud? Your favourite colour?" Tifa's voice sounded soft and whispery, but that was probably just the way the wind was stealing her words before hw could really hear them. Under her suddenly intent gaze, he felt the abrupt urge to fidget. Fighting to keep his eyes neutral he answered, hoping his voice sounded stronger then it felt. It was quite hard to speak with a dry throat. He compromised.

"Blue." Tifa arched an eyebrow.

"Blue?" Her voice sounded disappointed, but once again he chalked it up to the wind.

"Blue." He affirmed. They stood like that for a while, not noticing a diminutive girl approaching furtively. Or what she though was furtively. It's surprising how conspicuous you look when you stop every three steps and look around for pursuit or observers. Eventually the girl reached the two older warriors, who still hadn't noticed her presence.

"Hey, what's keeping you two! The boat's about to dock!" The man and woman turned to the little ninja in surprise before both staring down the length of the deck to the quickly approaching harbour. Yuffie waved her hands in front of their faces in agitation. "Hello? Anyone home?" Both stared at her again before beginning to move. Cloud stepped past her first, quickly followed by Tifa, leaving Yuffie at the rear.

"Hey! Everyone is waiting on you two you know!" Cloud strode across the deck, not much bothered about keeping up appearances anymore. Tifa's hair was going to cause a stir if they were seen anyway. Yuffie ran past and disappeared into the shadows of the stairs that led down to the hold. As soon as she was out of sight Tifa, reached out and snagged Cloud's wrist, stopping him in his tracks.

"Tifa?" She moved to his side and smiled at him hesitantly.

"We'll be ok Cloud. With Sephiroth I mean. We'll beat him, no problem right?" At the end he wasn't sure if she was reassuring him or asking him to reassure her. He settled for smiling and nodding.

"Yeah. No problems." The girl smiled and let his arm go, before following the younger girl towards the steps. Cloud trailed her and blinked as soon as he entered the cool shadow of the ships hull, trying to get his eyes accustomed to the darkness after so long in the bright sun. After a few seconds he could make out the interior of the ship's cargo hold. The rest of the group were at the bottom of the stairs, huddling behind a pile of boxes to avoid notice from the bustling workers. As Cloud approached a pair of bright, forest green eyes looked up at him, swiftly followed by a smile. He smiled back, or at least as close to a smile as he aver came. Blue was nice, but green had it's perks too…

* * *

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_**Present**_

Cloud watched Tifa as she leant over the stall barrier to pet one of the dark obsidian feathered chocobos, it's golden beak standing out all the more in the shadowed plumage. Even from the far side of the stables he could hear her humming a soft tune under her breath. Apparently feeling his eyes on her she turned and he did the same, carrying his eyes away from hers and tried to pass the incident as coincidence. He had, however, caught a glimpse of her garnet eyes, warm and gentle even in the dim lighting. Screw any other colour. They weren't worth anything compared to her eyes. Cloud sighed and got back to work.

Tifa cooed quietly at the large, dark plumed bird, leaning over the railing in front of her as she did. Suddenly feeling eyes on her, she turned her head and caught her friends bright blue eyes skimming away from her to concentrate on his work. Her eyes fell and the feeling of weightlessness she hadn't realised had over taken her dropped like a mythril anvil, leaving her pained and queasy. Once again she had hoped to find Cloud looking at her with adoration, desire or any kind of interest. Basically anything except the friendship that was all she ever saw from him. A new wound that lanced across her heart. Leaning back over the railing to pet the suddenly neglected bird she hoped that this time she would be able to hold back the tears. Too many times she had found them streaming down her cheeks, when confronted with the evidence that the man she had fallen completely and totally in love with saw her only as his best friend.

The last time Yuffie had spoken to her, months ago now, the young ninja had been shocked that nothing had happened between the two in the time they had been living together - at least in a physical manner. Tifa hadn't said anything but the idea that the two of them might end up sleeping together and then Cloud seeing it as a mistake terrified her. As much as she wanted his arms around her at night and his warmth by her during the day, she wanted his honest love a million times more.

Moving further down the rows of pens and stables, running a cursory eye over the giant birds as she passed to assure herself that of their condition. None seemed to be having any problems that she could detect. Continuing onwards she reached the dividing line between the first half of the stables and the second. To mark the area a stall on either side of the building had been dismantled and the area replaced with the supplies needed to raise chocobos successfully. There were bags of greens and various types of nuts for feed and fodder as well as basic medical supplies for the birds should they incur injury. Fortunately, according to the Sage's vast library Chocobos were one of the few animals that responded well to healing magic. Most creatures - Nanaki's people being the most notable exception - did not benefit much from magical cures, but Chocobos seemed to react favourably. Thus far the ranch hadn't had to deal with any severe injuries, aside for the usual gamut of scrapes and cuts which conventional medicine could cope with. As such the bandages and ointments sat on the benches Tifa was now approaching, ready for use. Squatting next to the bench she ran her fingers through the folded strips of gauze and bandage, wondering absently why nothing magical or otherwise could heal the pains she felt daily.

_'I'm becoming to sappy.'_ She thought, cringing slightly at her self imposed depression. _'I have lots to be thankful for… I have my health, my friends… Shin-Ra is finished and Sephiroth is gone…. And I'm living with the man I'm in love with. He just.. doesn't love me.' _Suddenly realizing that tears were starting to leak out of her eyes Tifa wiped her face hurriedly, not wanting the blond ex-mercenary to come across her and inquire about her crying. Getting herself under control quickly Tifa reached out for a strip of gauze to dry her eyes and was startled when she accidentally knocked something off the low bench onto the sand dusted floor. Through watery eyes she swept the tips of her fingers across the floor, wondering what item she had upset. Rubbing at her tears with one hand she soon came across the displaced articles. Kneeling on the dust laden floor she brought the wafer thin object up to her face and was surprised to find herself staring at the 9 of cups. She blinked.

Then she remembered. One of the birds had fallen ill and both Cloud and Tifa had opted to stay up and watch over the creature during the night. To pass the time they had played cards and must have left the pack in the stables when they left the next morning. The dark haired girl smiled softly, reaching down to pick up the rest of the pack that was scattered at the foot of the bench. Gathering the cards together she tried to recall what games they had played, the vision of Cloud throwing the pack at her in fake agitation bring a reluctant smirk to her lips. She had beaten him at one of the games _he_ had taught her. Despite the fact she was certain he had made up the rules specifically in his favour. It was one of her favourites, one he had taught her in the time they had spent raising their chocobos before the final battle with Sephiroth.

* * *

**25 months ago (1 month before the battle with Sephiroth)**

Tifa strode through the metal hallways of the Highwind, tired and aching. Catching Chocobos for breeding was exhausting. The warm air of the Mideel Islands kept the air more stuffy than she'd like in the giant airship, but she certainly considered it better than the areas around Icicle Inn. Tifa groaned slightly as a twinge of pain lanced up her legs, making them tremble more than she'd like. She was certain Cloud wasn't aching this badly. She was also certain that the blond haired mercenary was comfortably asleep. She had ventured out further than she should have after sending Barret and Yuffie back to the Highwind earlier in the evening and it had taken longer than she had expected to return. The night sky was clear and liberally speckled by stars when she had dragged herself up the ladder to the ship, with no little amount of swearing and cursing on the way.

In an attempt to capture healthy Chocobos faster she and Cloud had split up that morning and taken a few other members of the party each for backup. Seeing as they were the only ones equipped with Chocobo Lure materia and more importantly the only ones who had any knowledge of Chocobo breeding at all it was pretty much essential for them both to be out in the field. Cloud had suggested that it might be better for them to split up, seeing as they both had the materia in question. Tifa, though reluctant to leave Cloud's side, had agreed. Aside from her usual ingrained desire to be around the normally taciturn young man, a newer concern kept her almost permanently worried instead. It had barely been any time since their return from the lifestream and Cloud seemed to be still feeling the after effects. No surprise really, he had just found out that the life he believed was real was a fabricated product of mako poisoning, and drugs. She came across him several times sitting in the galley and staring at the wall. She could almost see him mentally filing and sorting memories, holding them up like film, trying to figure out if they fit in anywhere or weren't his at all. She didn't like seeing him at those times, looking like he was sifting through his life, discarding sections that didn't meld with the rest. She had hoped his worries would be banished by what they had learnt together in the lifestream…. But it seemed that was too much to hope for.

Feeling her eyes drooping wearily she trudged forward until she reached her quarters, stepping in only briefly to grab a towel and fight off the idea of just collapsing in her bed as she was and worrying about the consequences later. Standing still long enough to smell the sweat and dirt on her dissuaded her from that line of thought before it was even fully formed though. Grumbling and stifling another groan under her breath the young woman staggered back out of her small room and set off for the showers.

Half an hour later, feeling more refreshed and less exhausted, Tifa headed for the galley in a change of clothes. A quick meal made of whatever she could find in storage that might pass for being edible and then to bed. She had only found one Chocobo worth keeping and the chances were Cloud hadn't been any luckier - the creatures really were rare in the wild. That would mean another day of hunting tomorrow. Wearily turning towards the stairs, Tifa halted, surprised to see Cloud disappearing into the meeting room silently, before the door fell shut behind him. Blinking her ruby eyes twice,. the girl cocked her head to the side and considered. She was hungry and tired… but Cloud outweighed that. Moving down the steps with a bit more energy she ignored the dull echoes of her feet on the metal flooring, more interested in why Cloud was still awake. She had thought he would have gotten back well before her and would have been in bed by now. Apparently this was not the case.

Moving up to the door she hesitated briefly, wondering if he might want some privacy before shrugging lightly and pushing the door open. If he wanted privacy than she would give him some but that was no reason not to try. She was giving herself enough reasons not to deliberately seek out the man's company - she might start blushing, she might swallow her tongue, she might start frothing at the mouth and fall over… - without making up more.

Finding the object of her search sat at the long table in the plush, high backed chair that was closest to the door, she walked into the room prompting the blond to turn from his study of the blank wall and look at her. He blinked and opened his mouth, then closed it again. He seemed to be struggling to find words. Abruptly Tifa remembered what she was wearing. Assuming that no one else would be awake and that she would only be grabbing something to eat before returning to her room, she had changed into something suitable for sleeping in. She was wearing a very loose white T-shirt - one she was pretty sure was his, but was hoping he wouldn't notice seeing as she had no decent explanation for why she would have it - which was slipping off her left shoulder and a pair of loose shorts that had managed to contrive to show about as much as her skirt normally did. That, however, was for mobility. This was just embarrassing.

Cloud stopped trying to speak and resorted to blinking again. Tifa was certain that her face was about to combust since she was blushing so much. She had neglected to wear a bra, which meant that her… assets were displayed more than usual. Swallowing Tifa realised that Cloud looking at her that way really didn't bother her as much as if anyone else were. It would be a sign that he could be at least interested in her, she thought somewhat bitterly.

"Ah.. hey Tif. Something wrong?" It was the girl's turn to blink in confusion.

"No, why?" Cloud shrugged and leaned forward a little in the chair.

"What else could it be?" He smiled slightly as he said it, but Tifa was too busy feeling annoyed to notice properly.

"Oh, so I can't come and talk to you without having a problem now? I didn't realise that my company was so onerous for you. I'll leave you in peace then." The anger seethed in her tone, but Tifa was unsuccessful at driving out the under current of hurt that was also laced within. Turning around and promising dire retribution to the Gods if her eyes began to water, she was startled to feel a hand wrap around her wrist and stop her from leaving. She turned back to wrench her arm away, but stopped when she saw Cloud's tired and apologetic eyes.

"I'm sorry, Tif. I didn't mean it like that." As he spoke he dragged his free hand through his unruly hair and Tifa only now noticed that it was damp, meaning he had recently showered. "I'm just tired is all. You can come to talk to me about anything any time." He frowned slightly then and brought his eyes to the ceiling as if considering something. His tired smile stretched slightly as he brought his gaze back to meet hers again. "Well, except 'women troubles'. I don't wanna hear about that, ever." Tifa smiled at his little joke and stepped back from the door.

"It's ok. I know you didn't mean it. I'm sorry I over reacted." Cloud waved her apology away absently. Silence fell for a second before both of them realised that he was still holding her hand. Gently disengaging his fingers from their position around her wrist Cloud turned away and moved back to the table. Feeling slightly uncomfortable and nervous Tifa absently reached across her body to hold her left arm with her right. Unwilling to let the fledgling conversation they were having flounder so quickly she blurted out the first thing she could think of.

"So why aren't you asleep yet?" She watched his back stiffen and his muscles seemingly twitch slightly and immediately wondered if she had asked the wrong thing. Cloud sighed deeply and his body relaxed again, but slowly.

"Just… bad dreams." Tifa looked away, disappointed that her first attempt at talking to the blond man for an age had started out so badly. "Once I woke up I couldn't get back to sleep so I figured I'd have a shower and just grab something to eat." During his speaking he had turned back to facing the girl and she watched an expression of distaste flitter across his face. Suddenly wanting to giggle she smiled at him curiously.

"The food couldn't have been _that_ bad." Cloud's face contorted as if he had just bitten into a sour lemon. He leant back on the table and crossed his arms lazily before responding.

"Remember in Midgar, when Don Corneo dropped into the sewers?" She nodded, slightly confused by his change of topic. "The instant ramen Cid bought tastes like that sewer." Tifa burst out laughing and was rewarded with a small smile. It took a few seconds for her to quieten down and she soon found herself uncomfortable under Cloud's expressionless eyes. Abruptly standing up, he grinned tiredly at her.

"Hey, since you're still awake why don't we do something to pass the time?" Tifa's face coloured instantly, her mind helpfully replaying every perverted joke Yuffie had ever told her in surround sound. Cloud lifted an eyebrow curiously before jumping to the wrong conclusion. "Unless you want to get to bed. I won't keep you up if you're tired." She shook her head quickly, hoping to both reassure him and dispel her stubbornly persistent blush.

"No! Er, I mean, I'm not tired really. So what did you want to do?" Tifa felt her blush try to renew itself at her words. Aside from trying to rush past the embarrassing part and force a quick change of subject, an image of Cloud kissing her had just run through her mind before she had the chance to mentally beat the crap out of it and subdue the little fantasy. Dammit, now she really regretted spending those nights giggling with Yuffie over the little ninja's stash of romance manga. She brought her attention back to Cloud forcefully, seeing that he was looking at her strangely.

After a few seconds he shrugged and sat back staring at the ceiling in thought.

"How about cards?" He asked the ceiling blankly. Tifa broke into a feral grin. You couldn't be a bartender without learning to play cards. This was not something she could lose. It had become a habit of theirs to waste time in the Wonder Square at the Gold Saucer when waiting for the Chocobo races to start and she enjoyed it, but Cloud always beat her on the Snowboarding Game and it was beginning to rile her up. His score was unassailable. Both she and apparently Cid had tried to beat it - though he would never admit to it - but had so far failed. It was obvious Cloud knew how much it irritated her as well since most of the time they spent there ended up with her on the game and Cloud standing at the side giving 'encouragement'. It was uncharacteristic of him to tease anyone, but the third time he said something like 'Ooh if only you hadn't slammed into that wall you would have almost beaten my score' she had decided that war had officially been declared. And this would be her revenge. He may beat her at that goddamn game, but he would never beat her at cards.

She abruptly realised that she had been spacing out and grinning evilly at the far wall. Snapping back to reality, Tifa found that Cloud didn't seem to have noticed. Trying to salve her dignity she responded hurriedly.

"Cards sound good. Do you have a pack?" Cloud nodded and pulled two decks out of his pocket.

"My original plan was to play a few dozen rounds of solitaire, before trying to get back to sleep."

"So why do you need two packs?" Tifa asked, curiously eyeing the two stacks of playing cards in his hands. Cloud blinked at her, then chuckled briefly.

"I was planning to play Midgar Solitaire. It needs two packs instead of one. All the grunts at Shin-Ra played it during down time. It's almost impossible to win." Tifa's cheek twitched lightly. Ok, so he could play cards then. Not a problem. Not at all.

Damn.

"How about we head out onto the deck? It's warm out anyway." Tifa broke away from her quiet cursing and nodded to the idea. It would be more scenic than playing in the converted board room anyway.

A few minutes later found them both sitting cross legged on the wooden planking of the Highwind's deck. Cloud was shuffling the cards adroitly and without paying too much attention to the process, flicking cards through his fingers and sliding back into the pack in an impressive display of manual dexterity. Tifa found her cheek twitching again. He wasn't as fast as her, but it still wasn't a good sign. After a few minutes Cloud finished and begun dealing cards out between the two of them.

"So what's the game?" Cloud finished dealing, leaving them with seven cards each.

"How about Sword and Cup?" Tifa grinned internally. That at least was one she knew. The game was fairly simple: you had to get rid of all your cards before the other player or players did, while picking up a card for everyone you put down, or two if you couldn't play. After you had run through the pack and gotten rid of all the cards and all the cards in your hand you won. But if another player played the Prime of Swords then unless you had the Prime of Cups to counteract it you had to pick up ten cards. This made worse by the fact that if there was more than three players only two could avoid the penalty seeing as there was only one Prime of Cups in a pack and the game was played with two packs. Picking up her cards Tifa sorted them quickly hiding a grin. While you could put down one card at a time, you could also play runs as long as they were of the same suit and in consecutive order.

Her hand consisted of the three, four and five of Coins, the ten, the Son and the Mother of Batons and the Prime of Cups. She was set up nicely for a head start. She looked up to say something to Cloud about his shuffling being all flash and no substance, but faltered in the face of his wide grin. Feeling a little unnerved she opted for wary silence and played her three Coins on top of the two of Coins that had been flipped from the deck to start the game, picking up three more after she was done. Seeing that the three cards she had didn't match each other or anything already in her hand she turned to watch Cloud. Grinning even wider he lay down all seven cards in top of her five, his hand running from the six to the Mother. Tifa twitched, then began to gather cards, cursing non too quietly as she did. In the unlikely event of the hand dealt being completely playable the rest of the players picked up ten cards each. After she was done and Cloud had collected another seven cards to replenish his hand and stopped chuckling the game set down into a much slower pace. Runs of two or three were followed by long periods of only one card being played each.

The slow tempo of the game allowed Tifa to pay more attention to the man sitting opposite her than the cards and not suffer too much as a result. Still damp, his blond bangs hung lower in his face than usual and the water had tinged them a slightly darker colour than she was used to seeing. His mako blue eyes were the same, though they seemed brighter in contrast to his slightly darker hair. Throwing down a nine of Cups onto the growing pile between the two players, Tifa suddenly wondered what the nightmare was that had woken Cloud up. As she watched him fish a card out of his hand she wondered whether it was worth trying to discuss it with him. If it were someone else she would leave the matter alone unless they wanted to talk about it. On the other hand she was concerned about Cloud in a way she wouldn't be about anyone else. His return from the lifestream might not be as seamless as anyone had originally thought and besides that she had her own private reasons for being more concerned about him than anyone else. Aside from that though Cloud wasn't the type of person who'd talk about his problems willingly. He needed to be prompted or cajoled.

"Cloud?" The man looked up from his cards and met her hesitant gaze. "Do you… want to talk about your nightmare? I mean…" She trailed off, not sure how to finish her sentence. Cloud had looked away from her and was staring across the deck and over the expanse of open land that the Highwind had landed on towards the forests. She realised he was looking in the direction of the remains of Mideel. For a while it seemed that he was lost in his own thoughts and wasn't going to answer her, leaving the girl regretting asking the question which had seemingly destroyed a rare opportunity to spend some time alone with Cloud. Tifa stared at the pile of cards between them morosely, until Cloud's voice startled her. He began speaking tonelessly, sounding dull and devoid of any emotions.

"I… don't remember." Cloud shook his head, looking like he was trying to shake the dream free of himself. "Whatever it was, it was just a dream. It isn't important." He turned back to her and tried to smile reassuringly, but his eyes were dead. Tifa ignored the smile and met his eyes, still reeling from his words and seeing him regress into himself so thoroughly.

"You know… you can talk to us right? It doesn't always have to be you alone Cloud. We… I want you to talk to me more… about things. I don't want you to be keeping it to yourself all the time."

Cloud watched her, taking her in words while she avoided his eyes.

Their shared time in the lifestream had given Tifa a lot to think about recently. She had never realised that he saw her that way, or that he saw her at all really. He was always the quiet one in the village, who seemed above the taunting of the other children. She had no idea it had affected him so deeply. The few times they had spoken she had enjoyed. He was so different from her friends. He hardly smiled, almost never laughed. But he wasn't rude or mean to her either. It had been so easy to develop a crush on the silent Cloud Strife, even though they hardly ever exchanged words and the most she got from him in the street was a nod and never a smile of greeting. The night he had asked her to meet him at the well in the centre of Nibelheim she had been so excited, and a little scared. Maybe he'd tell her he liked her? There wasn't much point to him calling her out late at night for him to tell her he hated her, but the possibility gnawed at her insides when she allowed her thoughts to stray to such an idea.

When he had told her he was leaving town she had been hurt. Asking him to make that promise with her had been a last ditch effort to ensure that they might not lose contact completely. It had made her feel like a princess whose knight was swearing to protect her when he agreed. He wouldn't have agreed if he didn't like her, at least a little right? Well, now she knew. Her childish crush on the boy had become love for the man faster than she had thought possible, and it made her wonder if she had ever really gotten over the quiet youth that hardly ever smiled. Many times over the years her thoughts had turned to him, wondering where he was and how he was doing. Wondering whether he had achieved his dreams and lying awake at night thinking about whether she should hate him for leaving her alone in the village to go and join Shin-Ra, the people responsible for her family and friends death. Finding him at the train station… had been the happiest day she'd had in a long while.

She had spent most of the journey alternately scared of what was happening to Cloud and worried about his wellbeing. His memories were… wrong and he didn't seem to realise it. He talked about things that never happened with absolute clarity. He talked about things he shouldn't have been able to know. It terrified her. But now she knew. Knew that his childhood had been painful, that he had failed to achieve his dream, had spent years being tortured and played with and knew that he had finally come back to her. She was _damned_ if she was going to lose him to a nightmare.

"Thanks Tif. I'll… keep that in mind." The girl sighed quietly. He hadn't said that he would, just that he'd 'keep it in mind'. But maybe that was the best she could hope for right now. Small steps. They sat in silence a little longer, lost in their own thoughts.

"Hey, Tif? You know how to play Mythril Run right?"

* * *

_**Present**_

Tifa settled back onto her haunches and flicked the pack randomly through her nimble fingers, shuffling it repeatedly. That had been one of the few times she and Cloud had together alone during their chase after Sephiroth. That fact alone made it worth cherishing. Feeling her legs begin to cramp she stood up, letting the pack of cards settle back onto the bench. They had the other set in the house and they might want a deck out here sometime in the future. You never knew.

Cloud reached the end of his side of the stable without incident, taking the time to pet each of the giant birds a little and give them some attention. More of his attention was given to the structure of the building. He had been wondering for a while now about adding a second story to the stables, seeing as their flock was burgeoning and the chicks would soon need space of their own. It would also be nice to have an area dedicated to healing the chocobos as well. Their current method was to leave the injured bird in it's stable pen for the duration of it's convalescence, but Cloud felt somewhere separate for the wounded creature would be a better idea. Unfortunately the stable as it was wasn't sturdy enough to support a second story. He would need to erect stone pillars throughout the stables to make his idea feasible. It wasn't impossible but it was a giant pain in the ass. He was leaning against the doorway, lost in contemplation over his possible plan when Tifa arrived by his side.

"Did I keep you waiting long?" Cloud snapped out of his reverie and looked down at the young woman.

"Not really. Just thinking about something."

"Care to share?" Tifa leaned against the door at his side, both of them just inside the shade of the building. Her shoulder rubbed up against his arm. Cloud suppressed a shiver and cleared his throat, struggling to relax and not tense up completely.

"Uh… Remember I told you we could use more space for the stables?" Tifa nodded, meeting his eyes with curiosity. "I was thinking we could add a second story to the stables we have. But I'd need to put up some stone supports to keep the building safe and sturdy. It might just be easier to build an extension." Tifa bit her lower lip in thought.

"Yeah… but remember space. It might be easier to build upwards than outwards. Besides you know there are predators about, even now. Do you think the stables further out might get attacked or something?" Cloud nodded thoughtfully.

"You're right. I'll just have to put the posts in place. It's more work than I wanted to be doing, but it's a better option than putting the birds at risk. I can get the stone from Kalm the next time we do a supply run." The raven haired girl laughed quietly. It was amazing sometimes how protective Cloud could be of their little flock, or herd, or whatever. Cloud sighed and drooped slightly. It was the middle of summer. It was gonna be boiling when he started work. He'd fry. Dammit. Now he wanted to whine again. His companion punched his arm lightly, garnering his attention again.

"So, what's your plan for the rest of the day?" Cloud pulled his arms up behind his head as they both walked out of the stables, back towards the main house.

"Dunno. I was thinking about putting in a little practice." Cloud's smile took on a sly undertone. "Care to join in, Tif?" The young woman snorted delicately and rolled her eyes. Cloud's smile grew wider. "I understand if you don't want to. No need to tire yourself out." A vein bulged on a pale skinned temple. "You'd be a little out of practice anyway, right? I'd like to-" Tifa reached up and smacked him over the head, snapping his mouth shut and making him thank the spirits that he hadn't bitten his tongue.

"Get over yourself Strife. I'll be there." Tifa's voice began to sound playfully taunting. "Are you sure you wan to do this? We could skip it and save you the embarrassment y'know." Cloud looked up into the blue sky above them and traced the path of a few solitary clouds.

"Oh, don't worry Tif. I won't be embarrassed on your behalf. I'll leave that for you to do." Tifa swung at Cloud again and nearly over balanced as he danced to the side absently. She growled under her breath.

"Just get ready, Strife." He only grinned in reply. Separating at the door, they both headed to their respective rooms to change. Stepping through his door, Cloud's eyes were drawn to the giant Buster Sword on it's stand in the corner of his room. Moving over to his wardrobe he noticed it was getting a bit dull and made a mental note to polish the blade at some point in the future. Aside from the occasional foray for monster hunting, the weapon rarely got much of a workout these days. Pulling out a white sweatshirt and dark grey pants, similar to the ones he had worn during his time in Shin-ra, loose and easy to manoeuvre in, Cloud traced his eyes over the few materia embedded in the blade and studded around the top of the hand guard. After the final battle with Sephiroth he had taken it to a sword smith and had the materia slots upgraded. The growth was at half the speed as a result, but it was equipped with his favourite combinations of materia. Tifa had left her selection in her Premium Heart, but Cloud had an attachment to this sword that he could not break. It was his favourite weapon and a memento of a friend. Breaking out of his train of thought, Cloud quickly stripped and changed into the new set of clothes.

Leaving his feet bare, he padded outside into the hallway then outside. Not surprised to see that Tifa hadn't arrived yet, he ran some quick warm-ups a little bit away from the Chocobo pen attracting a few 'kwehs' of curiosity. Feeling his muscles fill with warmth Cloud ran a hand though his hair, noting that it had gotten longer than he was used to. He'd need to get it cut soon. Stretching his back he debated whether he should keep it as normal or re-grow the ponytail he'd had when he was younger. A trickle of sweat rolled down his temple to his neck, reminding him that it was the middle of the warm season and might not be the best time for him to grow his hair out.

Hearing the soft footsteps of his soon to be training partner in the short grass behind him, he turned and faced Tifa. The first thing he noticed was that she had worn her hair up in the clip she had bought in Midgar. Seeing as it was so durable it would keep hr hair out of her face without her worrying about it breaking. Having changed as well the woman was wearing a pair of loose shorts and a T-shirt tight enough to show the outline of her sports bra. Cloud's eye twitched.

_'This might not have been the best idea…'_ Smirking at Cloud the girl began to stretch and limber up, crouching and flexing her leg muscles before starting on her upper body. Finally she jumped to her feet and Cloud noticed that she too had decided to go barefoot. He watched as she fell into a loose stance, grinning at him cockily.

"You ready to for an asskicking, Strife?" Cloud laughed and dropped into a crouch, ready for her attack.

"Bring it on, _Lockheart.'_ Tifa blurred forward and struck with her left arm, swinging over Cloud's head as he ducked backwards and lashed out with a leg. Dancing to the side she leapt up, foot extended to strike his chest. Cloud grinned. Fun times.

* * *

_**25 months ago**_

Cloud stood on the bridge of the Highwind, watching the stars above him through the glass window. This was the second night in a row he couldn't sleep. And this time there was no convenient Tifa wondering the hallways to play cards with. The nightmares were becoming more frequent. Since his 'return' form the lifestream he'd had them repeatedly, perhaps two or three times a week. This was the first time they had happened two nights in a row though. Cloud dragged a hand through his ragged hair in frustration. He had a feeling that the closer they came to Sephiroth the more frequent the dreams would become. He shifted stance, feeling slightly uncomfortable. The air was warm but the steel floor of the ship cold, and it was making his feet numb.

They were getting close now… he could feel it. Not just the call to 'Reunion' or whatever it was that seemed to be a constant in the back of his mind. He figured that would go away once Sephiroth was dead. No, instead he felt as if event s were culminating. Everything was going to happen soon. Meteor would strike in a month at most, perhaps whether they defeated Sephiroth or not. The only conciliation in that thought was if they failed, no one would be alive to complain. Strangely that thought wasn't very cheering. He went back to staring at the stars. The dark sky had taken on a dark red cast, even in the dead of night. Meteor had become impossible to miss, lighting up the sky like a second sun. As much as it made Cloud shudder the stars were still visible… and Meteor was on the other side of the ship. He didn't have to look at it. He didn't have to look at a giant flaming indication of just how much he had failed. The creaking sound of the metal pole he was leaning on cracking in his grip prompted him to snap his hands open and step away from the rail guard.

"Cloud?" Clenching his fists, the young man turned away from the night time vista to face the upper deck of the bridge. Tifa was peering around the doorway, blinking curiously and looking nervous. The former SOLDIER realised he probably wasn't looking particularly welcoming and loosened his hands, opening them reflexively and having to put more thought than he felt necessary into keeping them open. Tifa didn't look particularly reassured.

"It's ok Tifa. Come on down." The words sounded grating and for a moment he thought she was going to decline. His jaw tightened when she nodded hesitantly and stepped out of the cover provided by the doorway. He blinked and the world seemed to dance. Tifa's long dark chocolate hair was trailing down her back without the bow that usually tied it at the bottom. Strands were trailing over her shoulders and wrapping around her shapely body, giving her a cute tousled look. Her large ruby eyes shone in the dark, reflecting a little of the latent redness of the night outside, making them appear deep and flowing like ruby wine coloured quicksilver. Obviously set up for sleep the girl was wearing a pair of loose white shorts and a very loose white t-shirt. Her long legs were on display and she was barefoot, explaining why he hadn't heard her walking up the metal stairs. She shifted uncomfortably and he realised he was staring at her. Turning his gaze to the side he uneasily beckoned her to come and stand by him. Hearing her soft padding as she moved forwards he shifted back to the viewing window, trying to avoid meeting her eyes. She moved up to his side, hanging back a little just out of sight.

They stood like that for a while.

"You're up late again… was it a nightmare again?" She asked softly from just behind his left shoulder. Cloud's muscles tensed and locked, his jaw clenched so tightly he could almost feel his teeth giving way. He didn't trust himself to respond without snapping at her and he didn't want to take his foul mood out on her. His silence was apparently answer enough for his smaller companion. His muscles were already tense and he nearly lashed out when she wrapped her arms around his midriff and pressed her face into his shoulder but stopped himself in time, violently twitching his arms away from her, horrified at the idea of hurting the girl. But he was unable to relax.

"You never tell us anything Cloud. You never talk to us. You're always silent - always trying to deal with everything yourself! Stop it Cloud… please, just stop it…" The blond swallowed, hearing the tears in her voice and feeling them seeping through the clothes he wore at his back. She had said something like this before last night… but he had never thought his silence was hurting her this much. He knew she particularly wanted him to share his thoughts and feelings more, but he couldn't. Not until Sephiroth was dealt with. If he did open up, he'd unravel and breakdown. That was fine, he could come apart at the seams later - but right now he had a job to do and mistakes to atone for. Maybe when it was all done he could talk. But right now silence was the only thing that was safe for him. He tried to turn in the girl's arms but she clamped down on his waist and refused to let him move. Sighing quietly, he tried again with a little more force and succeeded in breaking her relatively weak grip on him. Before she could draw away he reached out and caught her, holding her close to his chest. She didn't react for a few seconds, but then wrapped her arms around him again and snuggled into him obviously feeling as cool as he was. Trying not to hunch over her but keep her as warm as possible Cloud leaned back against the railing and held her as she nuzzled his chest sleepily.

_'When did I begin to notice she's beautiful?'_ He thought wistfully, breathing in the scent of her scented shampoo. He'd always seen that she was attractive, in an abstract sense. Wherever they went she was the object of attention, some of it, like Corneo's not that pleasant. But it had always been something he had acknowledged, not really noticed. The sky is blue, Tifa is beautiful. It was so easily a fact that it didn't even warrant noticing. Abruptly he felt like an ass for even thinking about it that way.

But when he had seen her standing on the bridge above him she had looked like an angel. Soft, warm eyes, ivory skin and dark tresses. It had sucked the air out of his lungs and left his head empty. Tifa Lockheart, the closest thing he could really claim to a best friend, even a friend at all, was gorgeous. She'd make some man very lucky.

_'And Barret and I will probably end up having a 'talk' with the guy as well…'_ He smiled slightly at the thought, easily imagining an enraged Tifa berating Barret for threatening her boyfriend as he apologised profusely and squirmed. Cloud saw himself sidling silently towards the nearest door or window to escape her wrath. Maybe they should just send Vincent in… He'd intimidate the guy easily enough just by being there. He resisted the urge to chuckle. Not that a guy with a sword bigger than himself and a man with a gun fused to his arm weren't reason enough to give him pause.

Tifa had settled down in his arms and was just hugging him now. Resting his arms around her he spoke.

"I can't talk to you right now Tif. But when this is all over and you still want me to talk to you, then I will, ok?" Teary ruby eyes looked up at him through strands of midnight hair.

"You'd better Cloud Strife. You're… my best friend. I want to know you're ok." So saying she hugged him again.

_'Best friend?'_ Smiling at the little endearment Cloud returned her embrace a little more then he had been. They stayed like that a while, before Cloud's feet began to feel numb from standing.

"You want to head back to bed Tif?" The girl shook her head into his chest before withdrawing from his arms, to stand shivering on the metal floor.

"No, I think I'm too awake to get back to sleep now. What about you?" Cloud shrugged. He hadn't been planning to go back to sleep anyway. Tifa rolled her eyes at his response. "Well then what are we going to do?" Cloud opened his mouth to suggest cards for a second night, but snapped it shut when she glared at him threateningly. He bit back a smile. He had beaten her at every game they had played last night, frustrating her completely. Eventually she had insisted on playing Snap, a game where her reflexes served her well. So, not cards then. Tifa's glare softened as an idea apparently struck her.

"What about sparring?" Cloud blinked at her.

"Now?" He asked with a tinge of incredulity in his voice. She nodded.

"Yeah, it's a warm night, why not?" Cloud blinked, mulling her suggestion over. She was as good as him with her fists, though for some reason didn't seem to think it and they'd sparred before. It was certainly more effective then beating some of the local wildlife. They weren't much of a challenge any more. He shrugged his acquiescence.

"Sure, why not?" Tifa nodded resolutely.

"Lets go then Cloud." Cloud started forward then stopped suddenly.

"Er, you're gonna change first right?" The young woman blinked at him curiously.

"Why?" Cloud's eye twitched lightly.

"That… might not be your best choice of fighting wear Tif." Tifa looked down at herself and blushed beet red abruptly, startling Cloud. Suddenly speeding towards the door Tifa called back over her shoulder to him.

"Er, I'll, um, meet you outside in a few!" That said she dived out of the room and her dull footsteps were all that Cloud could hear as she ran towards her room. Cloud felt one of the beads of sweat on his brow trickle down his face to his neck.

"What the hell was that about?"

* * *

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

**_Present_**

Cloud ducked under her outstretched foot and rolled to the side, avoiding a heel drop with a mixture of luck and skill. Snapping a punch towards her stomach, Cloud felt his hand impact with her forearm as she moved it to block, and pulled his hand back quickly before she could grab it and try to throw him. Quickly snapping up his defence he intercepted a series of strikes to the face, missing one that ploughed into his torso. Coughing briefly, he grabbed her arm and swung her off her feet, watching her spin in the air and land in a crouch grinning.

"What's wrong Cloud? Losing your touch?" She stuck her tongue out and mirth danced in her eyes. Shaking off any last effects from her punch he smirked.

"Just going easy on you to warm up, Tif." Her eyes widened as he leapt upwards bringing his fist down violently and smashing it into the ground where she had been seconds earlier. Blurring to his left he danced out the way of her strikes, avoiding windmill kicks and roundhouses adroitly, matching her easy grin without breaking the beat.

* * *

­­­

**_25 months ago_**

Cloud was leaning against the smooth metal of the Highwind when Tifa leapt down the distance from the upper deck, apparently not seeing much point in using the ladder. Hearing her quiet grunt and the sound of her feet crunching into the grass and dirt he moved round towards the sound, enjoying the warm breeze on his skin. Following her lead he had stepped into his cabin to change into a pair of sweatpants and a loose T-shirt. No need to get his sleepwear sweaty. Tifa grinned when she saw him and skipped over, making Cloud smile at her exuberance. She had changed into a set of clothes similar to his own, though the low lighting made it hard to tell the details.

"Ready to go down Cloud?" Cloud raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Keep dreaming Tif." She stuck her tongue out at him and fell into a loose fighting stance, barely giving him a chance to follow suit before shooting forwards. Soon enough he lost himself and his troubles in the sparring, ducking back and leaping out of the way of her strikes before returning some of his own. Stumbling slightly as she slammed an elbow into his midriff he was lifted off his feet as she caught him with his guard down and brought a foot upwards into his chest. Spinning in the air he braced his feet against the hull of the airship and launched himself towards her, his kick sailing over her head as she ducked hurriedly.

His turn to catch her off guard, he caught her with two palm strikes before she backed off and shook her head to clear the effects of the hits.

* * *

**_Present_**

Tifa ducked under a kick and returned one of her own, intending to sweep his legs out from beneath him. Her timing was slightly off and he managed to hop over her leg sweep and grip her from behind, holding her arms to her sides. Tifa blushed fiercely, feeling his chest against her back and his warm skin rubbing against hers. Suddenly feeling hot, she scrambled to break his hold and threw a kick at him to make him back away. Her blush didn't die down though.

_'Maybe this wasn't the best idea…'_

_

* * *

_

**_25 months ago_**

Having cleared her head Tifa moved forward, on the offensive again. Cloud moved steadily backwards, trying to slap her fists and feet away before they could make contact with him. This was relaxing in a way. It took his mind off anything else as they sparred. Physical work always calmed him down, though he wasn't used to fighting without his sword. It had been a while since he had fought with out a weapon - aside from the times he sparred with Tifa in fact he hadn't had to since basic training. Fortunately his strength and speed helped him keep up with the lithe girl. Otherwise she'd have smeared him across the plains by now.

* * *

_**Present**_

_'This was such a bad idea it wasn't even funny_.' Cloud thought darkly. They had been sparring for half an hour now and he was getting more and more uncomfortable. So far they had both managed to press themselves against their opponent numerous times and his attraction to Tifa was getting out of control. Her hair was coming free of the clip and beginning to trail down her neck and she was covered in a fine film of sweat, much like himself, which was making her tight white shirt more than slightly distracting. He caught her arm absently and swung her to the side, letting her momentum carry her away. She was breathing heavily and looked flushed, making her look as beautiful as ever in his eyes.

_'Aw shit.'_

_

* * *

_

**_25 months ago_**

Tifa stumbled to the side, her attempt at dodging a palm strike resulting in her catching her foot on a rock. Moving forward Cloud's leg twisted and buckled under him and sent him forward to crash into Tifa, sending them both to the floor. The rolled to a stop with Cloud on top, a few inches away from her face. Both of them noted their positions and blushed furiously.

Fate and Irony both love a good joke.

Cloud's eyes riveted themselves to the woman's small lips and found himself wondering if they were as soft as they looked, or what they tasted like. He could smell the scent of Tifa's soap and a thin musk of her sweat overlaid on top. Her arms had found their way around his back and it almost felt like she was holding him down. Wrenching his thoughts off the track they were walking Cloud lifted himself off the prone girl, not noticing her eyes begin to flutter shut in hope of a kiss. By the time he was standing she was too and refused to meet his eyes.

"Er, you ok Tifa?" He asked, rubbing the back of his head and feeling awkward. She nodded and threw him a thin smile in return.

"I think I'm going to turn in Cloud. This... has tired me out more than I expected." The blond nodded, accepting her words at face value. The girl abruptly turned and headed back towards the ship, leaving Cloud to enjoy the warm night alone. Watching her leave, Cloud turned his attention to the south and lay back, staring at the stars without seeing any of them really. He hoped Tifa was ok… she had left rather abruptly. He sighed and closed his eyes. With them shut he couldn't see the red sky. Or Meteor, which was conveniently in the north skies, behind him. He never wanted to see Meteor.

* * *

**_Present_**

The long grass swished around their legs as they leapt at each other, whipping to the sides as they moved and twisted. Both of them were trying to keep their minds on sparring and nothing else, but it was getting harder and harder to concentrate as time passed.

Abruptly Cloud caught his foot on a rock hidden in the long tussocks sending him sprawling into Tifa's sudden charge and sending them both tumbling. They rolled to a stop with Tifa straddling his chest and staring dazedly down into Cloud's eyes.

As far as Fate and Irony are concerned the good ones never get old.

Tifa stared down at the man beneath her, her mind unhelpfully drawing forth the memories of the last time this had happened. She had dared to hope that time… and it had hurt so _goddamn _much when he had moved away from her. She had bawled herself to sleep that night, stifling her sobs into a pillow in case she drew attention from the others. It wasn't fair that it should happen again!

_'It's not fair! It's not!'_ She blinked rapidly, feeling tears threaten to fall for the second time that day.

Cloud stared up at her, breathing in her beauty, losing himself in her soft garnet eyes. He wanted so much just to reach out and kiss her, he could almost feel his muscles jerking to do that very thing and only constant refusal from his brain to allow it was stopping them. His arm raised slightly and he gritted his teeth a little at the effort he had to expand to stop it moving further. The last time this had happened he hadn't thought anything of it… had thought about Tifa finding a boyfriend and he and Barret having to make sure to talk to him about treating Tifa well… hadn't even minded the thought of her being with someone else! Now the idea burned, sending his stomach churning and his heart searing.

Tifa shifted uneasily finding herself wondering if it would be so bad to just this once lean down and kiss him. She could claim it was the heat of the moment and everything would go back to normal afterwards. It sounded so tempting… She could feel herself moving forward in anticipation.

Except maybe things wouldn't be the same. Perhaps he wouldn't be able to see her the same way he had before if they kissed now. Perhaps things would become awkward and strained between them. Perhaps… he'd leave.

_'No! I can't let that happen! I can't let him leave! I.. can't live without him!'_ Terror swept through the girl. If he was gone than there would be nothing left for her. Her family, her hometown were all gone, and if the man she loved desperately left too… there would be nothing left at all.

Fear ripped through Cloud at the idea of her finding someone else and leaving him alone. She was all he had left... His parents and home were gone and he loved her more than life itself. He needed her with him. He couldn't let her leave. Life wouldn't be worth anything without her.

As Tifa shifted to stand Cloud leaned up and caught her wrists, pulling her down towards him. She hardly had time to think before his lips were pressed against her own and all possibility of thought disappeared completely.

Cloud felt her lips pressed against his, feeling soft and warm and tasting of strawberries. Slowly he reached up behind her neck and ran his fingers through her hair, coming caught quickly when he realised that the clip still held her hair up. Gently unclipping it he felt her dark tresses cascade over her shoulders and brush past his face. This done, he went back to running his hands through her silken strands.

Tifa felt her hair being unclipped and dully noted it slipping past her cheeks and over her shoulders. Closing her eyes and loosing herself in the kiss she decided that it was alright to enjoy this kiss. It was just a kiss after all. There friendship probably wouldn't change at all. Besides he started it. Feeling Cloud lie back on the ground she moved with him, leaning in to his chest as his free arm snaked it's way around her waist and held her too him. Before she knew it her arms were clasped around her neck with the grass they were lying on rubbing against the outside of her forearms.

Eventually having to break for air, Tifa leaned back slightly and stared at his slightly stunned face. Suddenly all the terror the kiss had driven away came rushing back, smashing into her with the force of a waterfall. All her reasons for accepting his kiss suddenly seemed weak and pointless, providing little defence against the growing certainty that she had made a huge mistake.

Watching her eyes clear, Cloud resisted the urge to gnaw on his bottom lip in worry. It was becoming apparent to him that his panic induced advances might not have been the best idea he had ever had. Watching her eyes flooding with fear he decided that the best he could hope for was to contain the damage to the best of his ability.

The terror reached a fever pitch as Tifa watched Cloud struggle for something to say and it suddenly didn't make any sense to hide her feelings anymore. What was the point? It was all crashing down around her anyway…

Cloud opened his mouth to speak hoping whatever he managed to say would make the problems all go away, but not holding out much hope.

"Tifa, I… I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"I love you." Cloud's brain froze over. The it woke up, went out for a frapachino and a cigarette to help it consider if what it had just heard had in fact been correct, then decided to communicate it's thoughts on the subject to Cloud through the medium of interpretative dance. Cloud then vocalised these thoughts faithfully.

"Guh?" Tifa looked away.

"I love you Cloud. I have… since we met up again in Midgar." Tears dripped out of her eyes and pattered onto his shocked face, sliding down his cheeks. "I'm sorry!" Tifa tried to leap to her feet, but Cloud's suddenly iron vice grip on her wrist stopped her. Abruptly swinging himself off the ground, the blond man rolled them both over so that he was on top staring into her startled eyes with determination.

"Did you mean that?" Tifa blinked tearily. "Did you mean what you just said? Do you love me?" She nodded slowly, tiny sobs making her frame shudder. Cloud stared at her for a few seconds longer before pushing his lips against her once again, kissing her with abandon. Tifa's eyes widened, then slowly closed in pleasure, feeling his arms around her again.

_'He's kissing me… kissing me! No one else but me!'_ Cloud's lips moved from hers and traced fire and ice down her throat._ 'He's kissing me, not her or anyone else…'_ The thought stuck, rammed through her heart like an iron spike. _'Not… Aeris…'_ Pushing him off forcefully, she scrambled away from him on her back trying to put some distance between the two. Her vision was blurred from her weeping and she eventually collapsed in a heap and sobbed.

Cloud dragged himself up, looking stunned and hurt.

"T-Tifa? What's wrong? I-"

"You don't love me!"

"What? I know I didn't say anything, but I do, Tifa! I-"

"No you don't! You love Aeris, not me!" Cloud winced as if he had been slapped and dragged a hand through his hair in pain and frustration, watching her tiny form wracked with sobbing.

"Tifa…" She spoke into her arms, not strong enough to even lift her head to face him.

"I always knew you loved her Cloud. Everyone did. I.. I refuse to be just something to help you forget Cloud Strife. I won't be a whore-" Cloud blurred forward and sieved her arms, pulling her upright and making her stare, shocked into his frozen eyes.

"Never say that again." Tifa swallowed, trying to stifle her crying. "I would never want you to do that Tifa. Don't even think about it!" His voice and eyes softened again as he watched her. "Aeris.. Aeris isn't here, Tifa. She hasn't been for two years. I don't love Aeris. I love you." Tifa blinked uncertainly, her resolve crumbling under the force of his words. His face was hovering a few inches from hers, so close to her lips.

"I won't be your second prize.." She whispered, unable to rip her eyes from his. Cloud shook his head.

"No. You won't be." Hearing his words Tifa pushed forwards and kissed him, trying to force herself into his arms, and knocking him off his feet again in the process. Neither of them much cared though, lost as they were in each others arms. Time stood still for them, keeping them in stasis while they explored each other's mouths, moaning quietly into each other. Finally, the unfortunate need for air forcing them apart the two of the lay there, Tifa's head tucked under Cloud's chin comfortably and their arms encircling each other. Finally she spoke.

"You love me?"

"More than I thought it was possible to love anyone."

"And… Aeris?" Cloud sighed.

"Zack loved Aeris. And I think she saw him in me too. I don't know how I felt about her, his emotions and feelings were so much a part of me that I'm not sure if I'll ever be sure where one stopped and the other started… But I know for certain I love you, Tifa. Nothing changes that." Tifa tightened her grip on his neck a little, trying to burrow into his chest for comfort.

They lay in silence, glorying in the feeling of each other close together. Wiping her tears away Tifa giggled suddenly.

"You know… we need to celebrate." Cloud blinked up at her.

"How do you want to do that?" She smiled down at him, then flicked his nose.

"You get to take me shopping!" Cloud twitched.

"Er…"

"Besides you need to make up for waiting this long to tell me you love me!"

"What! You didn't tell me either!" Tifa shook her head dismissively.

"Details and semantics, Cloud Strife." Cloud glared at her on outrage. Smiling down at him from his chest she smiled and blinked her large eyes cutely. He groaned and rolled his head back to thump into the ground behind him.

"Fine. If it'll make you happy."

"Woo!" She snuggled in again, her objective completed. "You make me happy, Cloud." She whispered rubbing her cheek into his neck.

"That's all I want, Tifa." He chuckled. "If I make you so happy does that mean… I don't have to take you shopping?"

"Nope!" Tifa grinned into his chest.

"Dammit." Cloud smirked into the blue sky. Then the firmament was blocked out by Tifa's glowing ruby eyes, her face serious once again.

"I love you Cloud Strife."

"Good. Because I love you too, Tifa Lockheart." Their eyes closed and they come together for one more sweet kiss.

* * *

_It's done! WOO - GODDAMN - HOOO! Seriously, I'm dancing right now! This has taken far to long and it's finally done! I think I'll say it again… WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I'm so happy, I've taken my pants off! That's how happy I am! Happy enough not to wear pants! _

…

_Yeah well anyway, I hope this second chapter lives up to the promise of the first. If there are any problems you have with it please say so and if I agree after listening to your reasoning I might change it. I have done such in the past. It's always nice to have a second point of view anyway. And now…_

_LOOK MA! NO PANTS!... Ma? Oh crud I think I broke her…._


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